Visual Effects
by smartkid37
Summary: Something's very wrong underneath the surface. When the truth comes out, will one team member's deepest fears become reality?  Written for the "I'll Be There For You" Challenge on NFA Community.
1. Chapter 1

**Co-Written by the fabulous Shelbylou!**

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><p>He squinted against the lights that glared through the squad room. Even his monitor seemed to work against him as the brightness burned holes into his retina's leaving him feeling nauseas and slightly dizzy. The tight band of painful pressure had been steadily increasing all day until it stretched behind his eyes now and bored deep into his skull signaling the start of the cacophony of jackhammers that were intent on beating him down bit, by painful throbbing bit. Unfortunately, being frustrated beyond breaking point at the agony wasn't good enough as he tried to muster all the strength he had to fight back against the burning sensation attacking his eyes. It wasn't important; what was important was the fact that they were in the middle of the case and a pregnant woman's life was on the line…two lives in one. He had to fight through it!<p>

It didn't help that the case currently revolved around whatever leads he could dig up electronically since all physical leads had led nowhere. Whoever had kidnapped the woman had done it quickly, quietly and so efficiently that there were no traces or signs he'd even been there. If they were going find her alive and nail the kidnapper, he was gonna have to pull another rabbit out of his electronic hat and soon.

"Talk to me, McGee!" Gibbs ordered impatiently as he walked back into the squad room with a fresh cup of coffee. Tim looked up and saw the familiar intolerance for the 'nothing yet, Boss' answers, radiating from the boss and sighed. It was the same whenever someone's life was in grave danger but since landing this case and having to try and find an eight month pregnant wife of a Marine, they'd all been under tremendous pressure and time constraints, not to mention emotional turmoil, since this was hitting them all deeply. They wanted and needed her found before anything happened to her or her unborn child giving them two victims by default rather than one.

Even Ducky and Jimmy were helping out as best they can because without guests down in hotel autopsy, they had decided they could be of more use making sure the team continued to take care of themselves through this difficult case. Jimmy delegated himself to making the food runs while Ducky kept to overseeing their general health by making sure they ate, drank plenty and slept, even if it was just for a short two hours here and there. When the M.E. had been told that the entire team had pulled yet another all-nighter two days ago, he'd been unstoppable in his efforts to look after them and they'd been too busy and way too exhausted to do anything more than take advantage of his help and be thankful for it. Even now, as Gibbs was still in the midst of issuing the order to Tim, Jimmy and Ducky returned with dinner and began handing out the individual meals, setting them on each agent's desk quietly.

"Nothing yet, Boss." Tim admitted with a heavy heart as he continued squinting against the light and pain in his head. The more he seemed to stare at the monitor, the more the burning increased making him wish for a darkened room and a place to escape this agonizing hell. While trying to keep searching online for traces of where their missing Audrey Peters had been taken and by whom, every move Tim was making and even every word he was speaking was sending more jolts of pain through his head now. The pain had been an almost constant companion for most of the last 24 hours but Tim had fought hard to push past it and keep going, resigning himself to working through it until they'd found their missing mother to be.

Ducky took one look at Tim and frowned at what he saw but before he could think about what was possibly bothering the young agent, Gibbs was on his feet and glaring, his mouth opening to rant.

"Damn it, McGee! We needed something two hours ago! You seriously telling me you got NOTHING AT ALL!" Gibbs shouted angrily.

"I know, Boss. I'm sorry." Tim apologized sincerely and carried on working through the pain knowing that this case was important; far more important than a headache; especially one that was making his job more difficult.

_**Thawack**_

"DON'T Apologise! How many times have I gotta tell ya? Just get me the damn information we need!"

Tim's vision blurred and he swayed in his chair as dizziness overwhelmed him and made his vision grey at the edges. His hands made a grab for his desk in order to hold on and try and salvage some degree of self respect and composure. Closing his eyes, he swallowed hard and bit the inside of his lip to silence the cry of pain as the jackhammers sped up and bored holes into his brain. It was agonizing and with every jolt, a wave of nausea seemed to follow.

"Jethro! Honestly!" Ducky sternly berated the Team Leader. "Surely you can see Timothy's in extreme pain! It's obvious that he's got a nearly blinding headache and headslapping him is not going to help the situation at all! If anything you should be thankful that your team know the importance of their work and carry on regardless."

Ducky crouched down beside Tim and laid a hand on the struggling and still unsteady agent. He tutted softly as he gently steadied him while using his other hand to turn his chair so that he could look at him better. After scrutinizing Tim for a minute, the M.E. called to his assistant. "Mr. Palmer. I have something a little stronger than Tylenol in autopsy. kindly run and retrieve the bottle for me please."

"Ducky, S'alright." Tim whispered and tried to turn back to his computer.

"No! Timothy, I cannot let you work on your computer at the moment."

"Can't stop. I need…we need to find…" Ducky placed his hand on Tim's arm and shook his head.

"It won't incapacitate you. It's strong enough to take the edge off without making you drowsy. I'm not afraid of telling you, dear boy, that I'm not happy about you continuing to work right now."

Tim sighed and leaned his elbow on his desk so that he could cradle his pounding head. Ducky simply sighed and turned towards Jimmy, who had frozen in place unsure as to what to do.

"Now, Mr. Palmer!"

"Yes, Doctor." Jimmy set down the last food order he'd been holding and bolted for the stairs, nearly flying down them in hopes of not wasting any time. Tim really did look like he was going to pass out from whatever had him in its grip and helping relieve his pain was much more important than getting Abby her lunch.

"That true, McGee?" Gibbs asked his agent with a tone that, while much quieter, was still bordering on angry. He hated being the last one to know when something was wrong with one of his team members and being berated by Ducky hadn't helped matters at all.

"Yeah." Tim admitted so softly the boss almost missed it. Without another word, he turned back to his keyboard and got back to his searching.

Gibbs frowned at the response and moved Tim's keyboard to the side. "Why the hell didn't you tell me sooner?" Gibbs demanded.

"Case, first. Boss. Gotta find her." Tim defended quietly and moved the keyboard back towards him. He resumed typing and Gibbs noticed the slower speed that his young agent was going. _How had he missed that?_ The long, slim fingers weren't flying across the keyboard like they usually do and that in itself was a sure sign that something was wrong; a sign that Gibbs had missed.

"Da'vid, get Abby up here to take over for McGee. McGee, go with Ducky." Gibbs barked as he looked across the room at her.

"Boss, it'll take too much time to get Abby up to speed on what I've done and what needs to be done. Please, just let me do this." Tim pleaded. He rarely stood his ground but this was important to him and he needed to prove himself to the gruff team leader.

"Timothy, you cannot…" The M.E. gently began to admonish him.

"Ducky, I HAVE to!" Tim argued heatedly without stopping his work.

"Then you will at least stop long enough to eat and you will eat enough to be able to stomach the pain medication."

Tim started to argue but Ducky held up his hand. "Timothy, you will take the tablets or I will be forced to medically relieve you from work."

"Okay." Tim replied meekly and stopped working to accept half a sandwich from Ziva with a small smile of thanks.

As he forced himself to eat it, every bite went down like a lump of lead that threatened to choke him. It sat uncomfortably in his stomach making it churn as badly as if he were on a ship. Jimmy returned with the pain relief and handed it to Ducky and thankfully, by that time, Tim had managed to get the entire half sandwich down. The only problem was, his throat decided to add to his misery and the chore of swallowing made it difficult and painful.

The _**ding**_of the elevator heralded someone arrival and a familiar loud voice soon rang through the squad room

"Hey, hey, hey! Very special agent DiNozzo has returned! Did ya miss me?"

Ziva turned away from where she was watching over Tim and advanced on Tony angrily.

"Bottle it, Tony!" she hissed as she reached him and snagged his shirt, pulling him out of the squad room and around the corner. He needed to be told what was going on so he could act accordingly and not make things worse with his loud, exuberant voice.

"Damn it Zee, what the hell?"

"Tony, for once in your life shut up!" Ziva hissed and placed her small hand over his mouth.

Tony pulled his head away and glared at his team mate. "What the hell is going on?" He demanded quietly and grabbed Ziva's hand before she could put it over his mouth again. "Don't even think about it."

"McGee is sick and has a dreadful headache. Your voice is much too loud for him which is why I asked you to bottle it." Ziva replied firmly and sighed. "I do not know what is wrong with him but he is in a lot of pain and appears to be dizzy as well."

"Okay. Thanks for the heads up." Tony said and started to walk back into the squad room. He paused briefly and leaned down so he could whisper in her ear. "And it's can it, Ziva. Not bottle it, can it."

Ziva frowned and moved to swat the annoyance away but Tony was too fast and was already making his way back into the thick of things. She allowed a small smile at the correction and followed him in only to see Ducky trying to help her friend.

"Now, Timothy, I must insist you let that half sandwich settle for a moment before taking the medication." Ducky instructed gently.

"Shoulda just eaten half of it. Wouldn't take as long." Tim grumbled while he complied, sitting back in his chair and closing his eyes. Even the darkness that his eyelids provided didn't help and two long, silent minutes later, his endurance waned as the painful burning became more intense. With a small groan, he stood up feeling like he needed to do something rather than just sit there. With the need to flush his dry eyes becoming overwhelming, he lumbered around his desk but was stopped short by an arm wrapping around his shoulder for support.

"Its okay, Probie. I'll get you there." Tony's quiet soothing voice offering help that hadn't been asked for and would have normally raised a red flag of suspicion with the younger agent, but at the moment, Tim was too grateful for the help and the sympathy. He leaned into Tony's supportive arm before he realized what he was doing. They'd barely taken more than three steps before Tim corrected his posture with embarrassement and an apology he couldn't get out fast enough.

"Sorry, To…."

"Don't sweat it, Probie. We'll let it slide this time. Look, we're here." Tony joked as he glanced worriedly back at Gibbs before opening the bathroom door and helping Tim over to the sink.

Leaning heavily over the porcelain, Tim reached for the faucet and turned it on before cupping his hands and splashing the cold water over his face. The movement was frantic and Tony couldn't help but shake his head at the deluge of water that escaped and splashed onto Tim's suit.

"Easy, McGee. You're getting soaked." Tim ignored Tony and carried on doing what he was doing so that he could try and ease the dryness in his eyes. Tony watched with a frown and shook his head as he walked over and shut the faucet off. Tim tried to reach out to turn the water back on but was stopped by Tony's hand grasping his arm gently.

"Talk to me, McGee. What's going on?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about it, I'll be fine." Tim answered and gently shook his arm free. Tony gave in and let Tim turn the water back on and sighed when his friend carried on saturating himself.

"Looks like it. I come back and Ducky's giving you pain meds and the boss is hovering round your desk like a paternal lion. Don't lie to me, McGoo."

Tim sighed and grasped the side of the sink with his head bowed. "I Just need to give my eyes a break because their feeling dry. I've been sitting doing searches for too long…and Gibbs doesn't do paternal lion, DiNozzo, not with me, anyway."

"That explain the headache from hell?"

"Yeah."

"And the bad reaction to the boss' head slap?"

Tim turned away from the sink and leaned against the edge. He grasped his head with both hands and started to gently massage his temples. He let his eyes close hoping that it would help keep the moisture there and cut the glare from the fluorescent strip lights overhead. With a dry laugh, Tim shook his head and groaned slightly at the movement. "Was there anything Ziva _didn't_ tell you?"

"You tell me, Probie." Tony's answer was more sincere than Tim had heard in a long time.

"Honestly Tony, I'll be fine. I just need a minute."

"Yeah? So you keep saying. Tell ya what. You promise me that you won't move from that spot and I'll be right back. Don't let me come back in here and find you in a heap in the floor because you tried to move." Tim started to protest but was bought up short by Tony holding his hand up to silence him. "Damn, McGee. Just stay there, okay. It's obvious that you're struggling and you look as though the sink is the only thing keeping you upright."

Tim conceded easily and gave a gently nod. "Thanks, Tony."

"No sweat man. I'll be right back." Tony repeated as he quickly stepped out of the bathroom, his eyes searching for and locating the person he needed to talk to. Walking up to him to keep the conversation somewhat quiet, he was quick to say what was on his mind. "Ducky. He practically drowned himself trying to flush his eyes." Tony couldn't keep the concern from his voice and Ducky looked at him confused. It took a short moment but realization dawned on the M.E. and he turned to his assistant.

"Of course! Mr. Palmer…"

"On my way, Doctor Mallard. I'll have the eye drops back here in just a minute." Thankfully Jimmy had come to the same conclusion and Ducky felt a pang of pride at the young man's sharpness. Jimmy took off at a run and the others watched as he stepped onto the elevator and disappeared from view.

"He's a good lad. Now, Anthony, let's get Timothy back to his desk, shall we?" Ducky suggested as he turned back to Tony.

"I'll get him, Ducky." Tony offered as he went back in after his partner and friend.

"Jethro…." Ducky turned his attention back to the Team Leader who'd been staring at the bathroom door silently while the boys had been in there and now seemed to be able to do little more than stare down at his desk.

"Yeah, Duck. I know." Gibbs raised his eyes back up to his friend. "Nothin' I can do about it now. Audrey Peters needs us to find her, tonight!" Suddenly, he shoved his finger down on an extension button of his desk phone.

"Abby, need you up here. Now." He withdrew his finger off the button before Abby had a chance to get a word in, effectively hanging up on her.

"What do you plan do to now Jethro?" Ducky asked but stopped when Gibbs simply glared at him and went back to the paperwork on his desk.


	2. Chapter 2

Fifteen minutes later found the team, minus Tim, once again settled in for relentless searching for anything that would help track down the woman and hopefully find whoever had taken her. While Tony and Ziva perused the phone records again, Abby sat at the work station next to Tim's and tracked bank and credit card statements, and phone records of Audry's immediate family members one moire time in hopes of finding that one clue that would push this case wide open. The gravity of the situation combined with the knowledge that their computer expert was sick and couldn't do the work he was best at spurred the silent but frenzied atmosphere.

Tim was just beginning to feel the blessed relief from both the eye drops and the pain meds. Taking a deep breath, he took one last drink of the cold bottled water and started to work on the case again. His first thought was that they'd missed something; something important. Picking up the clicker, he looked once more at the plazma tv where the posted photos of the people they'd talked to about their missing mother-to-be were still on display. Tony's absolute belief that it was always the spouse or significant other came back to his mind. The facts of the case replayed themselves through Tim's mind, or at least, the facts that led him to his current train of thought on it. Sgt. Peters was overseas, had been for five months now. The Peters' had only been married for eight months. Audrey Peters was eight months pregnant.

"Tony." Tim called over his shoulder to his teammate across the room at his desk.

"Yeah, Probie?" Tony answered without getting out of his chair.

"What is it you're always saying about domestic cases?"

"Oh, c'mon, McStumped! Everyone knows that Gibbs always _suspects_ the spouse, but I always believe they actually _did it._" Tony complained. "But, you're wasting time on it this time, Probie. We all know the husband has nothing to do with this."

"Do we? Is he the father of her child? Maybe he's not and he arranged it so …."

"McGee! That's horrible!" Abby cried in objection even as it brought both Tony and Ziva up out of their chairs and over to the plazma to look once again at the lineup of people on the screen and turn the volume down on their discussion.

"Doesn't mean it's not a possibility, Abbs." Gibbs said as he stood up and walked over to Tim as he stood in front of the plazma screen and got there at the same time Tony and Ziva. "What are you thinkin' McGee?"

"I'm thinking whoever fathered her child either doesn't want the child to be born or doesn't want the child raised by a man who isn't him." Tim answered as he looked his boss straight on. "Or…"

"The husband doesn't want the child because he knows it's not his." Tony supplied as his train of thought picked up on where Tim's was. "And hired someone to take care of the situation while he's overseas."

Gibbs looked at his youngest agent for a minute. "That's good thinkin, McGee." Turning around he barked new orders. "Ziva, get her medical records and see if there's anyway we can find out the paternity of the baby. Tony, dig deeper into the people we've talked to. Re-focus on the people she spent time with eight months ago; the men especially. Dig deeper into her family tree. Whoever took her had to have known her and been known well enough so as not to seem suspicious. Somebody's been lying to us, find out who and haul their ass in here!"

As the team got busy on their new assignments, Gibbs gave Tim a new one as well. "Get down to Ducky's and get some sleep. Don't let me have to knock some sense into you again, cause this time it won't be a slap across the back of your head."

"Boss, I'll go see Ducky after we find her. I have to help Tony." Tim answered as he handed the man the clicker for the screen. He turned to go back to his desk but felt a hand on his shoulder and looked back.

"I shouldn't have smacked you like that." Gibbs' tone and comforting gesture was all the apology Tim was gonna get but was more than he'd expected and more than enough to set things to right between them.

"Thanks." Tim replied quietly and gave a small smile.

Gibbs' lips quirked up slightly and he cocked his head towards his senior agent. "Go on, help Tony." the boss instructed gruffly feeling slightly in awe at how easily it was for his youngest to forgive half-baked apologies like the one he just gave.

"I'm just gonna get more coffee first and I'll be right back" Tim smiled a small thin smile that didn't reach his eyes and left the squad room for the break room. He fought hard to try and walk normally on less than steady legs though he didn't manage to fool the one person in the room who was still watching him carefully in case he fell.

"Gibbs, Timmy's gonna be okay, right?" Abby asked with a worried look in her eye as she looked over at the Team Leader.

"Why wouldn't he be, Abbs?" He drew his eyes off his retreating agent and looked over at her.

"He's never let us see him when he's not feeling so hot before. Even when he had that bout of poison ivy he was…he was…well he was strong! He just carried on and didn't show us how much he was hurting."

"Probably never had so much going on that he couldn't control in the middle of a case before, Abbs. Nothin' to worry about. His eyes just need rest and so does he. He'll be fine in the morning."

"I hope you're right, Gibbs." She answered as she kept digging, trying to find something that would help find Audrey.

"Probie's tougher than you give him credit for, Abbs. He'll be fine." Tony added quietly as he looked up from his computer screen. "You know what he's like."

"Both of you better be right. If anything happens to him…" she left the unmentionable unsaid and got back to looking for a clue as to who might have taken Audrey.

Between the three of them, it wasn't even half an hour later before Tim was proven right as the barely there phone call pattern was discovered by Abby. Sadly, the culprit behind the horrific kidnapping of poor Audrey was her very own cousin, Arthur and once that had been determined, Tony and Gibbs headed out to join up with Ziva and bring him in for questioning as Abby and Tim zeroed in on family properties where he may have stashed his cousin.

Ducky had gone with Gibbs in the speculative notion that Audrey, when found, would need medical attention and he wanted to double check to make sure that the baby was okay as well. The M.E. was also keen on making sure Audrey herself hadn't suffered as a result of her abduction.

Jimmy had been assigned the task of looking after Tim in case he became worse and making sure that Abby didn't ignore her own need to eat and not overdue it. The three of them huddled around Abby's computer as she ran the scans for his cell phone. Suddenly, Abby leaped up from her chair and bounced on the spot.

"Yes! Yes! We got him! The Idiot just used Audrey's phone! Gotta call Gibbs!"

Tim smiled and handed her his cell phone he already had ringing through to the boss. As she waited for him to answer, she sat back down grinning and tried to calm down so she didn't babble during the call.

"_Whattaya got, McGee,?"_

"Gibbs! He just used her cell phone. The signal's coming from the 2nd property on the list – not even ten miles from where he snatched her!"

"_That's good work, Abby. Take a break." _Gibbs rewarded her as he ended the call_._

Abby huffed at the abruptly ended call and handed the cell back to her friend. She was never happy when Gibbs did that to her. She pursed her lips slightly and glanced over to Tim and Jimmy before making up her mind and nodding enthusiastically to herself.

"C'mon, guys, we're taking a break." She said and stood up with a flourish. She hooked her arm through Tim's and waited until Palmer was also supporting Tim on the other side before moving out toward the break room. They'd done all they could and now it was time to take care of their troops left behind.

******NCIS******

Two hours later the team was finally able to call it a night. They'd successfully extracted Audrey from the locked windowless room her cousin had thrown her into. It had been a mission made all that much simpler since the guy had gotten pulled over on his way back from the gas station close to the house where he'd stashed her. While he was being escorted to the Navy Yard by the local LEO's, the NCIS Agents were escorting Audrey to the hospital after Ducky had confirmed she was well enough not to need the services of an ambulance.

In her advanced stage of pregnancy, riding in the back of one of those vehicles, lying flat on her back would have been uncomfortable, if not painful and there was no need for her to suffer through that. They had allowed her to ride to the hospital in the sedan with Ducky carefully driving while Ziva rode shotgun and Tony rode back to the Navy Yard with Gibbs. To err on the side of caution, the hospital was keeping Audrey overnight and Ducky was staying there until she was comfortably settled into her room and was going to sit in while Ziva took her statement.

Ziva returned to the squad room with Audrey's statement and told Gibbs that she had left Ducky with the victim because the pregnant woman seemed to find comfort in the kindly Scottish man and the M.E. wasn't averse to giving it. It wasn't long before she was writing up her report so that everyone could finally close the case fully and get the rest that they all so desperately needed but the fact that Tim was missing didn't go amiss.

"Gibbs, where is McGee?" She asked softly.

"Don't know. Abbs isn't here either so he must be with her. Don't worry, he didn't leave." The fact that the boss wasn't concerned soothed the worry but she still stole a quick glance with Tony who was obviously just as worried. The senior agent shrugged and carried on with his report.

Just as the last of the reports had been handed in and everyone had picked up their bags to leave, Gibbs' phone rang and the sound of groaning and thuds from the dropped bags, rang through the squad room.

"Go! Both of you!" Gibbs ordered when he saw who was calling. He opened his phone but didn't answer straight away. "Get some sleep and I don't wanna see any of you until Monday!" Three relived faces smiled tiredly at him and he watched the all file out before turning back to his cell. "How is she, Duck?" The Team Leader asked.

"_Monday? I was under the impression that we were all on call this weekend, Jethro." _

"Vance bumped us off the rota. Whattaya got for an update for me, Duck?"

"_Honestly, Jethro_…" Ducky huffed out. "_At least we have the weekend off, that is if myself and Mr. Palmer are included in that_."

"Duck!"

"_Our mother-to-be is resting comfortably and both she and the baby will be just fine. I'm told that her husband will be landing state-side tomorrow and will be able to stay with her until the child is safely born as well. Thankfully, he managed to get compassionate leave but couldn't leave sooner."_

"That's good to know. Alright Duck, go home and get some sleep. Palmer's already on his way to get you."

"_I won't pass that opportunity up, Jethro. I heard you dismiss the team; they are all well?"_

"They're fine Duck."

"_Does that 'they' include Timothy as well?"_

"Haven't seen him. He wasn't up here when we got back."

"_Oh, dear! You will at least inquire as to his whereabouts with Abigail and send him on his way, won't you?"_

"Relax, Ducky. I'll take care of it." Gibbs assured and shook his head slightly at his old friend.

"_Thank you. That boy is badly in need of at least 24 hours away from computer work, Jethro."_

"Yeah, I figured. I'll make sure he gets home. Night Duck." Gibbs closed his phone and stowed it in his pocket. He sat back and thought back to when he'd arrived back to an empty squad room earlier. Of course, Tony had asked questions but knowing Abby he knew she'd probably whisked his young agent away for a break. He had been a bit concerned about his youngest agent since there was no sign of any written report, even though Abby had been called and notified as soon as they'd successfully retrieved their missing Marine wife. In ordinary circumstance, McGee's report would have been sitting on the desk already completed or he'd have been diligently working on it by now.

Without another thought, he headed down to Abby's lab and was brought up short at the sight of both Abby and Tim sleeping on her futon mattress on the floor of her inner office. Knowing it was late and they needed to get a full night of decent sleep in their own beds trumped the desire to leave them alone because knowing these two, Tim would wake up and do his report and Abby would stay with him. Gibbs crouched down and winced at the cracking in his knees before gently shaking Abby awake.

"C'mon, time for you to get home and get some real sleep."

Abby sleepily let Gibbs help her to her feet and together they stepped away from the futon, stopping at the inner office door before she offered an objection, louder than she'd intended it to be.

"Gibbs! I was sleeping! With Timmy! It doesn't get any more real than that!"

"Cute, Abbs. Real cute! Go on, wake him up. He needs to get home and sleep in his own bed. Ducky's already worried about him and wants to keep him away from computers for the next 24 hours."

"Good. He needs the break, Gibbs."

"I'm aware of that, Abbs. Go on, get him up." Gibbs replied succinctly feeling slightly amused at Abby's bossy tone.

"M.. up." Tim spoke up quietly from behind them. They turned to look and found him sitting up, wiping his hands across his face several times to try to clear his spotty vision and residual pain behind his eyes. Frowning when that failed to work, he drew in a ragged breath and let with a rush of frustration and slowly got to his feet. He rolled his head slowly to relieve the stiffness in his neck and slipped by his Boss and friend quietly before stopping and turning back to kiss Abby on the cheek. "Thanks for the use of your futon, Abs and for forcing me to stop and get a little sleep. I'm gonna go finish my report now. It's almost done, Boss. Sorry for sleeping on the job."

Watching Tim try to adjust to being awake, Gibbs hadn't missed the unusual behavior the young man had exhibited. If he didn't know any better, the boss would think something was still wrong with Tim; something that was scaring the young man if the look on his face just now was anything to go by. Following Tim's lead, he kissed Abby on the cheek and gave her one last instruction for the night. "Let me know when you're ready to go, I'll drive you home."

"It's okay, Gibbs. I can drive myself. I'm a big girl." She quipped. "I'm more worried about Timmy trying to drive. He doesn't look like he's feeling any better."

"Abbs. It wasn't a suggestion or a request. I'll be waiting upstairs and don't worry about McGee. He's not driving himself anywhere either." Gibbs told her and headed out determined to stop his youngest agent from working on his report or leaving on his own.

Tim fought to hold himself upright as he made it past Abby and the boss, and sighed with relief when he was safely on the elevator. He leaned back against the wall, allowing it to hold him up as he steadied himself and tried to rein in his breathing and get it under control. He'd feared this day was coming when the pain, the burning sensation behind his eyes and his god-awful headache wouldn't go away no matter what he tried. His eyes had been giving him hell for weeks now, but he'd masked it well by never looking anyone straight on unless he absolutely had to and by spending most of his spare time using the eye drops that he'd dropped into his backpack earlier that morning and hadn't found the time to dig them out. He knew that while the water he'd been using had helped temporarily, it wasn't half as effective as the drops and he probably wouldn't feel this bad if he'd taken the time to get them out and use them

The headaches that had begun as dull throbbing and advanced on into unrelenting vibrating jackhammers had become common-place now, as had the irritation of his eyes themselves. The trouble was that, although the problems had been getting progressively worse with his eyes over the last few weeks, this was the worst things had gotten and it had caught him off guard. What was worse was the fact that he'd been ill-prepared to hide it and everyone had seen exactly how weak he'd been.

Being able to do his job turned away from people was a life-saver and he'd been able to close his eyes often enough that it had enabled him to keep going. Oddly enough, the only difference in his behavior had been more frequent trips to the head, so he could keep his eyes hydrated, which had led to being harassed by Tony for his '_weak plumbing'_.

After that round of teasing and eyebrow raising had died down, Tim had changed his game plan. He'd taken to disappearing to the back of the building and going down or up a floor before hitting the head. Since the entire problem he was trying to forestall was how competent he was seen doing his job, the fewer comments and observations made about him, the better. Tim had barely been able to keep the grin off his face when Tony had remarked on Tim's '_amazing recovery from his plumbing how it had suddenly morphed into the unquenchable thirst for coffee that rivaled the boss'._

"_Damn McGoo, we're gonna have to start calling you McCaffeine if you keep this up." _Tim forced a smile at Tony's gibe. It pissed him off no end but even he had to admit that it was a good one.

As the elevator reached the squad room level, Tim pushed himself away from the wall and walked back to his desk, somewhat more steadily now that he'd had time to regain his balance and actually give his eyes more of a break. The sleep had done them good but it didn't help his head as the crew of jackhammers were once again working overtime to bore into his brain. The volume and intensity had dropped significantly enough that he wasn't wincing with every word, sound or step he made but they were still there, laughing at him as the cacophony continued.

Tim knew he needed to do something about this problem, but he rarely had the time off work and he feared the worst diagnosis since it would end his usefulness on the team and with his notoriously bad luck, the agency

They depended on his ability to crack the electronic trails and get it done faster than the rest of the team could do it. If his eyesight was failing him and was only going to get worse, as he feared, then he would no longer be needed and his career would be over. It wasn't the same thing as Gibbs wearing reading glasses. The boss didn't rely solely on his eyes to do his job. Tim did. It was a fear so acute that it kept him silent about his trouble and the physical pain it brought with it. Even now, a good three weeks after he'd first started having trouble with his eyes, there was a part of him that was in denial and it warred constantly with the logical side of him that told him to get it checked. It was the part of him that decided everything was alright and he still had the twenty- twenty vision that he'd always had.

Tim had convinced himself that if he didn't talk about it and he didn't let a doctor give him an official diagnosis, it would go away. He was sure of it. All he had to do was baby his eyes when he was off the clock and do the best he could at keeping them hydrated and rested every spare chance he got while at work. That was why he'd been so silent in the car rides during the last few weeks, spending every minute of them with his eyes closed so they could have that chance to rest.

Of course, it hadn't occurred to him that they all thought he was sleeping and there were more than a few times when the boss had slammed on the breaks to wake him up which of course, gave Tony ammunition for the barbs about late nights. He let them bounce off him like water off a duck's back, but the fact that Gibbs just smirked at him every time he'd hit the brakes made Tim feel better because there wasn't displeasure there, just amusement.

Tim just hoped that being given the weekend off would help greatly and put things back on track. He was counting on it. As quickly as he could, he dove back into his case report, having nearly finished it before Abby had dragged him off for that nap, insisting his need to rest his body as well as his eyes was more important than a case report that could wait.

"McGee." Gibbs called out to him as he walked quietly into the squad room. Tim jumped slightly and glanced up to see Gibbs standing by his desk watching him.

"Boss?" Tim asked nervously and felt like a deer caught in the headlights. Gibbs had caught him off guard and now, Tim thought he was in for it and turned back to the report. "I'll have this done soon, Boss."

"C'mon, you're comin' home with me. I'm not letting you get behind the wheel. Soon as Abby gets up here, we're leavin'. How much of that report have you got done?"

The last thing Tim wanted was for the boss to look to closely at him and he was too tired to argue about the Gibbs' order. He resigned himself for a stay at Chez Gibbs and sighed. "Just need another two minutes, Boss."

Gibbs frowned. Tim hadn't argued with him about coming to his house; in fact, the kid was being complacent and letting himself be led. _What the hell was going on?_ He watched Tim carry on typing, oblivious to the concerned look Gibbs was giving him.

The remaining three members of the NCIS family left ten minutes later and Gibbs couldn't hold back the smile at the sight of Abby sidling up to Tim as soon as she had entered the squad room, and hooking her arm through his with the pretense that she needed the security he could offer. The team leader knew differently though and could see the worry shining deep in her eyes and was glad that she was there to give Tim the silent support he needed because his youngest agent wasn't one to boast or complain and he sure as hell wouldn't tell any of them what was wrong unless they dragged it out of him. One shake of the head from Gibbs and she knew tonight was not the time to dig for the answers. It was time to let everyone quietly recouperate and regroup.

"Gibbs, you don't have to drive me home, you know." Abby suggested from the front passenger seat after they'd gotten in the car and he'd pulled away from the Navy Yard. "I could just crash on your couch. That way Tim and I could have a slumber party, watch movies, pig out on popcorn…"

"Abby, I'm too tired, really." Tim interrupted. "I just want to sleep."

The last thing he wanted was to have to strain his eyes any more tonight. He'd felt a moment of relief when Abby had told him that she'd let him have the space of the backseat while she rode up front. She hadn't wanted him to feel squished up after the day he'd had and with the discomfort he was already feeling. He'd smiled at her gratefully and stretched himself out across the seat as much as he could while still being seatbelted in. Even now, as he gave Abby a straight insight into what he couldn't handle, his eyes remained closed, his head back against the seat and he wasn't moving an inch, except his hands as they attempted to ease the pain in his head.

"Kinda forgetting the 'medically ordered break from straining his eyes', Abbs." Gibbs remarked as he watched in the rearview mirror while Tim continued to massage his own temples while keeping his eyes closed.

'Oops, Sorry. Still I hate for you to have to go through the trouble." She insisted.

"If you wanna crash on my couch, you're welcome to. You know that." The boss reminded her. "Although, I've cleaned out the spare bedroom since the last time Dad was here, so you're welcome to use it."

"I know, Gibbs. Tony reminds me every time he tells me that he got through the week okay because he was able to crash on your couch." Abby told him as she settled back into her seat, her own exhaustion settling in. "He never fails to brag about the awesome steaks you grill in your fireplace, either. The guy's got a penchant for carrying on about things that make him feel better about himself, I'll tell you. I mean I know Tony's had a rotten childhood and all, so I'm happy when I see him happy like that, but…" Abby trailed off, suddenly too tired to even finish the conversation, her own exhaustion settling in and taking over.

Tim's head remained back against the seat, eyes still closed and so, although he watched for Tim's reaction to Abby's words, Gibbs saw none. His agent was already closed off; his mind and focus most likely solely on the current state of discomfort he couldn't shake.

With the moment gone where he could have said something to anchor Tim's reaction to the announcement of Tony's seemingly special treatment by the boss, Gibbs frowned as he returned his attention to the road, suddenly anxious to have both his passengers safely tucked up in his house sleeping soundly since they both needed it.

Once parked in his driveway, Gibbs proceeded to help Abby inside and comfortably stretched out on the guest bed, already sleeping before he headed back outside to help Tim out of the car and inside as well.

He was surprised to find Tim actually already stumbling his way to his door, having already gotten out of the car on his own. Taking in the unsteady gait of the young man, the boss attributed it to the man's exhaustion and let it slide, simply showing Tim where he could sleep for the night.

"No, I won't take your bed, Boss." Tim objected firmly.

"McGee. Take the bed. We're not on call this weekend and I want you to sleep without any disturbances. I usually crash on the couch anyway and in this house, the only way you're gonna get a decent night sleep is if you take my bed. I like to get up and make coffee pretty early and I don't wanna wake you up. Trust me you need to be away from the rest of the house anyway because it's a pretty safe bet that the others will be here at some point in the morning. Not gonna let them mess with your need for sleep. Now, quit arguing and take the damn bed." Gibbs ordered in a surprisingly conversational tone.

Tim stood there momentarily stunned before nodding. "Okay. Thanks Boss."

"No sweat, McGee. See ya in the morning. I'll be in to check on ya. Don't even think of leaving the bed until I do." Gibbs answered and tossed an extra blanket and pillow on the bed. He turned on the bedside lamp and made sure the drapes were firmly shut before moving to turn on the overhead light..

"Yes, Boss." Tim gave in. he knew the man wasn't including necessary trips to the bathroom in that order. He also knew that this was Gibbs' way of showing that he did give a damn about him and he wasn't about to thumb his nose up at it.

With a smile and a nod, the boss picked up the spare blanket and pillow for himself, tucked them under his arm and said goodnight before closing the door, leaving Tim to settle in for what would hopefully be a restful night. The trouble was, Tim had none of his things here beyond his backpack, which was, _oh, no, it was still out in the car! When he'd gotten out of the car earlier, he'd been in too much pain and feeling too much exhaustion to remember it and now he didn't have any of the meds or drops that helped him!_

With a frustrated sigh, Tim headed back down the stairs, slowly and still on unsteady feet, in pursuit of his backpack. He hadn't taken more than a couple of steps down the staircase before Gibbs was standing before him at the bottom, eyebrows raised in silent question alongside the glare that demanded an explanation.

"I forgot my backpack out in the car. Need it to…"

"Go on to bed. I'll get it for you. All you had to do was ask, McGee."

"Didn't want to be a bother, Boss." Tim murmured, looking suitably abashed.

Gibbs couldn't help the fleeting thought that his agent looked so young and innocent standing there like that, but soon shook that thought away because he wasn't talking to a child, this was a valued member of his team no matter how he looked. Even so, he found himself turning on his heel, muttering under his breath "unbelievable…stubborn…good thing head slaps are off limits….pigheaded…"

Tim smiled softly as the older man's words reached his ears. Turning around he retraced his steps back to the bedroom and got ready for bed as best he could without a change of clothes.

As he came out of the bathroom, it was to find a fresh change of clothes, obviously the boss' with the NIS sweathshirt and a pair of sweatpants in a color Tim had never owned. On the bedside table was a new bottle of water, presumably so Tim could take whatever meds he needed to. Tim had to smile. The boss was more thoughtful and personable than anyone ever gave him credit for.

Suddenly, the smile was gone. That was not going to be the story if and when Tim's problem with his vision came to light. Shaking his head at the unintentional pun his brain had just concocted, he finished getting ready for bed and was soon comfortably stretched out and already heading toward dreamland without even thinking on anything else as the meds finally kicked in.


	3. Chapter 3

Five O'clock the next morning found Gibbs snatching cell phones from both his house guests' nightstands before they could be woken up unnecessarily. Shutting his own phone off as well, he actually went back to bed to relax, even if he couldn't sleep. Iit wouldn't do any harm just to lay down and get the chance of a bit of down time. The next time his eyes opened, His gut instinct told him something was off. Getting up quickly, he first went to check on Abby only to find her sleeping peacefully, her dark hair strewn across the pillow like a dark blanket. Smiling at the angelic picture she presented, Gibbs quietly closed the door and moved on to check on Tim. He stopped and glanced at his watch. It was only seven in the morning and the chances are Tim was still sleeping anyway. Maybe he should just leave them both to sleep rather than crowding them both with his worry. With a sigh, he shrugged and palmed the handle of his room but something caught his attention.

Freshly brewed coffee was coming from downstairs and he hadn't set the automatic timer so someone was up. Abby was asleep so that left his agent. He made his way downstairs and walked into the kitchen expecting to see Tim sitting there nursing his own coffee. Instead, he was met by the sight of a full jug of sludge and a note propped up in front of it. It had obviously been placed so he would be sure to see it. Picking it up, he immediately recognized the neat handwriting that belonged to his youngest agent. Blinking several times, he drew his reading glasses out of his shirt pocket and put them on before attempting to read what Tim had written.

_Boss:  
>I Couldn't sleep and knew you'd want your bed back. I got a cab home to sleep till Monday but thanks for everything. See you at work.<em>

Ti...McGee  
><em>P.S. I turned the timer on, on your coffee machine. Thanks again.<em>

Gibbs frowned. The fact that this meant his agent had disobeyed the order to stay in bed wasn't sitting well with him, but he knew the young man didn't lie and with the inability to sleep probably driving him crazy, it made sense that Tim would take himself on home. _But how had he gotten there?_ _Probably took a cab back to the yard and got his car. Guess if he'd had a problem, he'd have called me by now._

Any further thought on the subject was interrupted by Abby's arrival in his kitchen. Her disheveled hair and make-up free face made her look like a teenager, bringing forth a tug of a smile to Gibbs' face

"Mornin', Abbs. Sleep okay?"

"Morning, Gibbs. I slept great! Wow, look at the time! Timmy's not up yet? That's not like him. I'd better go get him up. Guess I'll take him some coffee and a muffin." She picked up the coffee mug already sitting on the table and grabbed up a muffin off the plate before turning to the doorway.

"No, Abbs. Don't bother."

"What? Why would you say something like that Gibbs? I know he's not Tony but that shouldn't mean you treat him like he doesn't matter!" Abby protested angrily.

"Abby! He's not here." Gibbs fairly barked at her, completely irritated at her instant assumption that he didn't care about Tim.

"What are you talking about? Of course he's here. He was so exhausted last night, he's probably still in the land of dreams!" The Lab Rat argued heatedly.

"He left. Even if he had been here, I wouldn't have let you wake him up." Gibbs told her more calmly as he handed her the note Tim had left for him.

"Why did he sign his name like that and why the heck did he think he needed to go home just to sleep?" Abby asked in confusion.

"Not sure, Abbs." Gibbs' tone was quiet and solemn as he tried to work out the answer. He drew a blank though but his gut told him that there was something wrong with his agent.

"I'm going over to check on him later." She declared.

"Don't even think of going over there til after dinner tonight. Let him get some sleep."

"Fair enough. In fact, I'll take him some dinner so he won't have to cook" Abby agreed calmly.

Gibbs nodded in silent agreement and turned his attention to his breakfast, essentially putting the entire conversation away since it had worked itself out.

******NCIS******

Tim returned to the land of wakefulness with a head that was still throbbing, although no longer actively jarred with jackhammers. Blinking several times in an effort to adjust his eyes to the darkness that surrounded him, he could barely make out the time on his digital alarm clock that sat on his bedside table. _6:00 PM_

He found himself feeling shocked that he'd managed to sleep the entire day away; barely remembering waking several hours earlier and somehow making it to the bathroom to take care of his business and then back to bed. Part of his brain was still asking how he'd made it home from the boss' house at the terribly early hour of 6 AM. _Had he even left the guy a note of explanation?_ Tim couldn't remember that either.

Sighing heavily, Tim swung his feet off the bed and planted them firmly on the floor even though he didn't attempt to move beyond that. As soon as he was upright, he was assaulted by a strong wave of dizziness that left him feeling as though the room was spinning. He was disconcerted and disorientated and figured he'd slept too long but truth be told, his eyes felt significantly better. They were still irritated, causing him to blink repeatedly, as if doing so would bring the much needed, yet long absent moisture to his vision. That was the problem with having to cope with the internet diagnosis of Dry Eye Syndome. It always took a while for the moisture to seep through and without the drops, he knew he'd struggle.

It had been a few days since he'd thought about what was going on with his vision in any detail but he did know that when he'd did basic research on his symptoms and become convinced he had the condition, he'd chalked it up to not that big of a deal. Now, some three weeks later, he seriously knew better. He'd read up on it further and could still recall what he'd read.

_Dry eye syndrome is a chronic lack of sufficient lubrication and moisture on the surface of the eye, caused when the lacrimal gland or associated glands near the eye don't produce enough tears, or the tears have a chemical composition that causes them to evaporate too quickly._

_This condition has several causes; as a side effect of many medications, such as antihistamines, antidepressants, certain blood pressure medicines, Parkinson's medications and birth control pills; or because you live in a dry, dusty or windy climate._

_If your home or office has air conditioning or a dry heating system, that too can dry out your eyes. Another cause is insufficient blinking, such as when you're staring at a computer screen all day. _

_Symptoms range from subtle but constant irritation to ocular inflammation of the anterior (front) tissues of the eye and may include persistent dryness, scratchiness and a burning sensation in your eyes._

Blinking without even realizing it, Tim breathed out a sigh of frustration as he wiped his hand across his face. Slowly, he meandered his way to his kitchen, setting up a pot of coffee to brew. Tim knew he needed to sleep, since it was only six in the evening, but there was no way he could go back to bed anytime soon. Watching the coffee brew, he reveled in the peace and quiet as well as the much lessened pain in his head and behind his eyes.

A knock on the door of his apartment soon stole the peace and quiet right out from underneath him and Tim couldn't wait to get to the door to stop the racquet before it set his head to pounding again. "I'm coming." He called out in hopes of getting the person on the other side of the door to stop knocking.

Thankfully, it worked and Tim was actually able to smile when he saw that it was Abby through the peephole, waiting to be let in, a bag of groceries in her arms. Practically throwing the door wide open, Tim immediately reached out to ease her burden from her as he greeted her cheerfully.

"Hey, Abby! This is a nice surprise. Thank you."

"Hey, Timmy. You're looking better than you did last night. Much better. How are you feeling?" Abby breezed in and promptly shed her coat and yanked him into one of her famous Abby hugs as she waited for his answer.

"I'm okay. What's all this?" he asked as he gestured towards the bag he'd set on the counter for her.

"Dinner. And supplies for breakfast. And lunch tomorrow. And dinner too." Abby answered blithely as she emptied the bag's contents out onto the counter, revealing, everything she'd just mentioned; eggs, bacon, bread, tuna, macaroni and cheese and even a frozen pizza and an already made sub sandwich that Abby immediately unwrapped and set in front of Tim, along with a bottled water from his fridge..

Sitting down in front of the food she'd just unwrapped for him, Tim was floored and he quietly let her know as much. "Wow, Abby. You didn't have to go through all that trouble for me."

The Lab Rat looked at her friend appraisingly, took in the pinched pain beginning to become prominent across his face and the weariness set in his expression and she frowned.

"You're still in pain?" Abby asked in surprise. "I'm calling Ducky!"

Looking up from the B.L.T. sub he'd been about to start eating, he reacted quickly, setting it down and reaching for her hand. "NO! Abby. No. I don't want you to call Ducky just because I still have a headache. I'll be fine." Keeping his voice firm, he pushed for her to accept what he needed. " I'm just gonna eat this wonderful dinner you've been kind enough to bring me; then I'm gonna go relax in front of a movie until I can fall back to sleep. I'll be fine."

"Timmy…"

"Abby! Please. Just let me take the rest of this weekend and sleep in without worrying about anything and I promise, I'll be right as rain by Monday."

Abby huffed out an unhappy air. "Fine. But, I'm gonna hold you to it, McGee. If you come to work on Monday and you're still having headaches, you're gonna let Ducky do something about it!"

"Right." Tim agreed.

"Don't make fun of me, McGee! I'm serious here!"

"I wasn't making fun of you, Abby. I was agreeing with you."

"You'd better be! Okay, then. eat . And no coffee for you until you have no more headaches!" She turned off his coffee maker and poured the fresh pot of the brew down the sink. "Go take your sandwich to your living room and get comfy while I clean up in here. I'll be in to sit with you and watch it with you as soon as I'm done sprucing up in here." She demanded seriously.

"You don't have to do that, Abby." Tim objected even as she propelled him toward his living room.

"I want to; just like I want you to go relax and watch whatever movie you had in mind." She insisted seriously in her 'don't argue with me' tone of voice.

"Thanks, Abby." Tim smiled as he allowed her to propel him out of the kitchen, only to be called back before he'd taken more than four steps.

"Oh, by the way; here ya go." Abby announced as she pulled a pair of sunglasses out of her shirt pocket. "Compliments of Tony."

"Great. Tell him I said thanks?" Tim requested as he accepted them and slid them onto his head, kissed her on the cheek and headed on to his couch.

*****NCIS*****

Abby let him go, turning her attention to cleaning up his kitchen, her mind re-running everything she'd noticed and Tim had let her see and hear. Frowning, she thought of the pain still visible in his eyes and the fact that he was currently trying to continue to strain his eyes watching a movie? Working quickly, she soon had Tim's apartment set to rights. The only problem was, the entire time she'd worked to clean up Tim's apartment, she'd thought the situation into a pure worry. She needed to talk to Ducky. Suddenly, she didn't want to wait until Monday came around because she needed answers now. Pulling out her phone, she hit the speed dial for him and waited with bated breath for him to pick up the phone.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey, Duckman!"

"_Abigail! What can I do for you, my dear?"_

"Is it smart for McGee to be watching a movie if he's still in pain?"

"_Timothy's still experiencing pain? Is it his head or is it his eyes?"_

"Does it make a difference?"

"_Enough of one. Let me talk with him, won't you please?"_

"Sure. Let me take the phone to him."

Abby clomped her way to Tim's living room, expecting to find him watching a noisy movie. "Hey, McGee. Ducky wants to talk to you." She told him a bit loudly before she'd even set eyes on him.

When she finally saw him, it brought her up sharply. "Oh."

_"Abigail?"_ Ducky asked over the phone. _"What seems to be the matter?"_

"Just a sec, Ducky." Abby answered as she set the phone down and picked up the television's remote and hit the mute button, bringing silence to the room once more. Picking the phone back up, Abby spoke into it quietly. "Gonna put you on speaker, Ducky so you can listen in." Setting the phone back down, she hit the speaker button and turned her attention to Tim as he sat on his couch, with his laid back and his eyes closed against the images and light emenating from the television before she'd even rescued him from that unwise choice.

"Timmy. Are you okay? Abby asked worriedly.

"Mmm?" The young man wearily raised his head back up, his eyes stubbornly refusing to completely open against the light and the pain in his head making it hard for him to keep his eyes open any longer.

"I knew trying' to watch a movie was a bad idea. How's the head?" Abby asked calmly.

"The jackhammers are back." Tim mumbled as his head flopped back to the couch once more.

"Think you can talk to Ducky ?" Abby pushed.

"Told you, didn't wanna bother him." Tim argued weakly.

"Did you hear that, Ducky?" Abby asked as she sat down on the coffee table in front of Tim, her eyes now on her cell phone sitting in her lap.

_"Yes, Abigail. I did. Timothy, my boy, why didn't you call me so I could help?"_

"Oh, God. Ducky, so sorry."

_"Nonsense, dear boy. I understand you're still feeling the dreadful headaches?_

"Yeah."

"_Are your eyes still bothering you as well?"_

"Slept all day – headache's normal, right?" Tim questioned with slightly more strength in his tone as he fidgeted in his seat and deliberately avoided Ducky's question.

_"Have you eaten anything today?"_

"Sandwich from Abby."

_"How long ago?_

"I just fed him right before I called you, Ducky." Abby chimed in.

_"Alright then, give him two of his extra strength pain relieve and get him settled comfortably so he can sleep it off, Abigail. Can you do it or do you need someone to come assist you?"_

"I've got this, Ducky. Thanks. I'll call you later."

_"Yes, do, please I'd like an update once you get Timothy sleeping peacefully. Do take his temperature for me as well, before you leave him to sleep through the night, won't you?"_

"Sure thing, Duckmister. " Abby hung up the phone and set it down on the coffee table, grasping Tim's arm and pulling. "C'mon, McGee, time to get you to bed.

Thrown off balance by the weight of Abby's pulling, Tim managed to flop over onto his side on the couch – immediately curling up into himself, groaning painfully as he lost the fight of keeping what he was going through quiet.

"This isn't just eye strain from this past week, is it, McGee?" Abby asked angrily.

"Stop yelling, please." Tim begged pitifully.

"Sorry." Abby conceded in a much quieter tone.

"Can we talk about this later?" Tim asked plaintively.

""Sure. Go on to sleep, though I wish you'd do as Ducky recommended and get comfortable on your bed. I'm supposed to check your temperature for him at least. And you need that pain medicine."

"'M. fine. ..ank you. …home …soon… enjoy … weekend." Tim murmered as he dropped off to sleep.

Abby smiled as she patiently remained sitting down waiting for a few minutes while he settled further into actual sleep before she took out her cell phone and snapped a photo of 'her Timmy' at his cutest. Seeing his face still showing signs of pain, the smile soon faded away and was replaced by worry.

Silently, she slipped from the room and returned a moment later with the thermometer she knew he kept in the bathroom medicine cabinet. Taking his temperature in his ear twice to be sure it was right, Abby sterilized the thermometer tip and put it away before returning to the kitchen to finish cleaning up. It had been forever since she'd been able to spend time like this with Tim and even though he was unaware she was still here; she relished being able to help him outside work.

After sending Ducky a text message with the results of her temperature check on Tim, she turned her attention to his groceries or lack of them. Taking stock of his near empty cupboards, she wrote herself a list and pocketed his key ring as she headed out to the store. The last thing she wanted to do was have to wake him up to get back in. Surprisingly enough, as she reached the parking lot of Tim's apartment building, she found Ziva and Tony just getting out of Tony's car.

"Hey, guys, what are you doin' here?" Abby asked without even stopping to think the answer was rather obvious.

"How is McGee? He must be alright if you are leaving." Ziva surmised.

"No, he's actually sleeping off another headache. He fell asleep before I could even give him anything for it. Ooh, Tony, since you're here, why don't you help Timmy get comfortable on his bed? I couldn't get him to even try to get off the couch earlier."

"Probie has a couch?" Tony smirked. "Yeah, Abbs, I can do that. Why don't you ladies go do the shopping and leave this to the pro?"

"Pro – what, Tony?" Abby smirked as she turned to Ziva. "You wanna come with me?"

"Why not. Behave yourself Tony. Do not let us come back to find that you've done something terrible to McGee!"

Tony looked wounded. "Now, would I do something like that?"

"When would you not?" Ziva threw back at him as Abby laughed as she reached into her purse and pulled out Tim's key ring and handed it to him.

Still smiling she unlocked her car doors and let Ziva in and headed out; leaving Tony standing there with that adorable look on his face.

*****NCIS*****

Tony's face lost all traces of humor as he turned and headed into his probie's apartment building. He hated that Tim was suffering like this; hated it that his teammate and friend hadn't said a word to anyone until yesterday, when it had all become too much for him to handle. He knew that if Gibbs hadn't gone off on Tim the way he had; over unreasonable expectations, then Tim never would have said a word to anyone. Tony couldn't help but wonder why.

Easing himself into the apartment, Tony locked the door behind himself and took off his shoes to muffle the noise of his footsteps. Looking in the living room, he found, just as Abby had said; Tim was crashed out on his couch; almost huddled into the fetal position, sleeping. On a second glance, it was easy to see that Tim wasn't exactly asleep, but merely tossing and turning just enough that it was obvious he was still in pain.

Remembering Abby's remark that she hadn't gotten a chance to give Tim any pain relief before he'd fallen asleep; Tony made the decision to wake the younger man up and get him medicated so he could actually sleep with less pain. Looking around the room, he spotted the bottle and the bottled water next to it, both sitting on the coffee table in front of Tim.

Breathing out a sigh of frustration, Tony moved those items over enough to sit down in front of Tim's line of vision and began working to wake him up. With a hand on Tim's shoulder, he shook him just enough it couldn't be missed. "Wake up, Probie."

Groaning, Tim slapped his arm up over his eyes, letting his hand fall beside his face. "What are you doin' here, Tony?" he grumbled hoarsely.

"Came to make sure you're alright, McOutof it."

"That why you decided to wake me up?" Tim asked snippily.

"You weren't exactly sleeping well there, McGee. C'mon, you need to take some pain relief. Then maybe you'll actually be able to sleep worth a damn."

For a long silent minute, Tim remained still while he tried to work through what Tony was trying to do for him and the fact that the Senior Field Agent was actually being a nice big brother. This was a side of Tony that Tim wasn't used to seeing and wasn't sure he could trust but he was completely vulnerable to it right now and could only accept whatever was being dished out. Wincing through the jackhammering going on in his head, Tim moved his arms and pushed himself up into a sitting position, his head almost instantly falling backward to the wall, his eyes stubbornly remaining closed almost as if they were glued shut.

Tony looked around and frowned at the extra lighting in the room with the bright lamps and television screen lit without anything actually playing on it. Wordlessly, he got up and turned off all the extra lighting and came back to the coffee table and sat back down in front of his teammate. "You can open your eyes now, the lights are dim."

Hesitantly, Tim opened his eyes, feeling relief wash through him at the soft glow that was the only lighting in the room. "Thanks, Tony." He offered quietly.

"No sweat, Probie. Ready for those pills yet?"

"Give me a minute."

"Sure. Tell you what; why don't you answer me a question while I'm hanging out over here?"

"Depends on the question, Tony." Tim answered seriously.

"It's not a hard one, Probie. I just need you to tell me why you never said anything about this to us before."


	4. Chapter 4

_You guys are such a great audience, I'm happy to post another chapter._

_Thank you to all you wonderful readers and a very special Thank You goes out to those few who have been kind enough to review._

_Right - On we go!_

* * *

><p>Monday morning dawned earlier than most birds were up, since Tim had made sure to set his alarm earlier than necessary. Since he needed to be able to drive in before the harsh winter sun rose in the sky, but couldn't handle the bright headlights in the pre-dawn darkness, he'd have to wait for a cab and didn't want to be paying for extra time for a cab sitting in crawling traffic. The only answer to that was to ride in to work a good two hours early; thereby eliminating both the irritation on his eyes and the excess cab fare.<p>

The weekend break from work had done Tim a world of good but even though his eyes felt better; his head, for some reason, still throbbed just enough to remind him that the problem had not truly gone away. Having Tony and Ziva as well as Abby descend upon him to make sure he was alright Saturday night, had certainly driven that point home already and he could hardly believe he'd managed to forestall that conversation Tony had pressed him to have about this mess, honestly enough by pleading the need for pain relief and more sleep. The three of them had been kind enough to leave him peacefully sleeping after the girls returned from the grocery store and put away what they'd gotten for him. Making sure to leave him a note; they'd quietly left out, unwilling to wake him again.

Now, sufficiently rested and having had a decent breakfast thanks to his friends picking him up easy heat-n-serve breakfasts when they bought him groceries Saturday night and wearing the sunglasses Tony had so thoughtfully provided for him, Tim arrived in the squad room and breathed out a sigh of relief at its dim lighting. He loved this atmosphere; no noise to disrupt the peace and quiet and no harsh lights to irritate his eyes that didn't seem to want to give him a break here lately. He would go out later and get the three of them some breakfast and hot coffee to thank them for their own kindness shown to him Saturday night. The fact that they'd left him in peace all of yesterday, added to the feeling that he genuinely owed them a generous thank you in return

But, for now, he'd enjoy the pre-dawn darkness and peace and quiet. Booting up his computer, he had to blink several times before his eyes cooperated and adjusted properly to his computer monitor's illumination. Browsing through his emails, he was elated to see at least three requests for Tim's help from other teams since he knew he was expected to provide such help when Gibbs' team was not working an active case. Printing and signing the proper paperwork, Tim logged out of his computer and stuck the documents face down on Gibbs' desk before he headed out for the coffee shop down the street.

He'd take advantage of the quiet time to go get that breakfast he needed to treat everyone to before heading down to Cybercrimes to start helping with the first case he'd been requested for. Tim made good time and was actually back in the squad room and setting everyone's food and drink on their desks before any of them appeared. Picking up his backpack, he shouldered it and headed down to Abby's lab to deliver her breakfast to her before he headed into the sub-basement for the day.

Oddly enough, Abby hadn't made it in yet when he arrived at her door, either. Setting her breakfast on her desk, he headed down to Cyber-crimes. He needed to be settled in at the start of the work day in order to acclimate himself to his task at hand as soon as possible so he wouldn't loose any time getting read in and could make the most of the work day to get the task done.

With several other requests for Tim's help, it was bound to be an extremely busy day and the sooner he got started the better he would be able to get more than one accomplished. He was relieved that he had thought to lay the paper trail of where he was and what he was doing, on the boss' desk. With a sigh, he settled into what he knew was a chronically empty work station and opened up the file folder he'd brought down to build a paper copy of what he was doing down here, for Gibbs' sake, and re-read the email he'd printed off that explained what was needed from him, one more time.

*****NCIS***  
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The normal start of the work day arrived with no sign of Tim, causing Ziva and Tony to begin worrying almost immediately. Both of them were still concerned about him after the events of Friday and even after leaving him to sleep off yet another brutal headache Saturday night. Having not been able to visit Tim to check on him on Sunday, on the strict order of Ducky, they were left wondering if he'd recovered sufficiently enough to come to work.

Spying the piece of paper lying on the boss' desk, Tony made a beeline for it. If he was lucky, it would tell him what was going on with the Probster. Tony knew it was a long shot, but it was one he was willing to take.

"Not thinking about snooping around my desk, are ya DiNozzo?" Gibbs casually asked as he strolled in behind his Senior Field Agent and delivered him a head slap before walking around him to settle in at his desk.

"Uhm, Well, No, of course not, Boss." Tony sputtered as he backpedalled to his own desk and plopped down in his chair. "Just wonderin' where Probie is, is all."

"Yes, it is not like McGee to be…" Ziva began to chime in.

"Down in Cybercrimes, helping them out." Gibbs supplied as he waved the paper in the air at them before setting it in his desk drawer and turning to his own monitor to go through his dreaded emails.

The audible sighs of relief from both of his agents caught Gibbs' attention. Looking over at each of them in turn, he couldn't help but ask. "What the heck's wrong with the two of you? You're actin' awfully protective of him. Since when does he need coddling from you two? Hell, I've never known McGee to need coddling from anybody."

"Gibbs, we are not coddling him. We are simply concerned about his seriously painful and numerous headaches."

"That's just it, Ziva. They're headaches, nothing more." The Team Leader reminded her

"Oh, I'm afraid, that's not quite proven to be accurate as of yet, Jethro." Ducky announced as he approached his friend's desk from the back corridor.

"What else is goin' on with him, Duck? And why didn't you tell me about it sooner?" Angry Gibbs lashed out.

'I haven't substantiated my supposition as of yet, Jethro. But, I feel it is necessary to advise you, since you are on the subject of Timothy and his seemingly endless bouts of headaches and eye strain; that it is very possible that there is much more going on beneath the surface of this problem than we are aware of."

"Like what, Duck?" Gibbs pushed.

"We could be dealing with anything from a chronic condition that Timothy has developed to a temporary case of eye strain that needs more time away from the tasks that promote that strain."

"That's it?" Tony asked in surprise as he came to stand next to the M.E. alongside Ziva who had already joined him in front of Gibbs' desk.

"No, of course not, Anthony. With the human eye, there are endless possibilities for problems, as with any part of our bodies. It is our eyes, however, that are used most often and most often taken for granted and least often safeguarded against ove-use or wear and tear so to speak."

"What are you sayin, Ducky? Is there something we should be looking out for?" Gibbs pushed for more information.

"Specifically Jethro, watch for more of the symptoms Timothy was showing on Friday; although it's best not to let them develop into as irritated a state as they apparently were then."

"And if we notice he seems to be having such problems again, we should send him to you, yes?" Ziva took a turn at asking a question.

"Ah, not necessarily, Ziva. I'm certain Timothy has eye drops of one kind or another; possibly prescription strength, if what he's experiencing is a genuine condition and not just strain and he's already been to see his eye doctor. No, what I'm alerting you to is the need for Timothy to be reminded if necessary, to treat his eyes with more kindness than usual, until this has passed."

"I already gave him a pair of shades to wear. I figured he'd need at least that much help. And at least now, I can rest easy knowing he'll at least look cool while he's at it." Tony grinned half-heartedly.

"Ducky, you mentioned eye drops. Is it possible he has been needing these drops for some time now? Would that explain his frequent trips to the mens' room a few weeks ago?" Ziva questioned, her eyes stuck to Tony like glue.

"Oh, it's quite possible. Although, I don't believe his need for them would have decreased. In fact, I'm surprised you haven't mentioned his frequent trips any sooner."

"That's because he stopped using the drops." Tony admitted guility. "Guess, I made him feel stupid enough with the endless wisecracks about his plumbing problem, he stopped taking care of his eyes."

"Use your head, DiNozzo. He didn't stop; he just started using the head on a different floor." Gibbs spoke up sharply, pissed that another round of Tony's typical joking and hazing; had possibly caused Tim some added problems with his vision. "Thanks for the heads up, Duck. C'mon, I'll walk with you back down to your suite. You two, get busy. Cold cases aren't gettin' solved by themselves."

Gibbs walked with Ducky to the back elevator, neither of them speaking a word. Waiting until they were safely ensconced inside the now descending box, Gibbs flipped the switch for his 'office'. "What can we do about it?"

"Well, Jethro, we can get him to have his vision checked."

"_You_ can. I don't want this in front of Vance unless it's absolutely necessary."

"Yes, well, I imagine that is probably what is keeping Timothy so mum on the situation, himself. I'm certain, he's already established that with vision problems, his job might very well be in jeopardy."

"Duck, just because he has eye strain, doesn't mean I'm gonna boot him off the team!"

"Jethro, you missed the point. It is not _your_ actions, Timothy is in all likelihood, concerned about. _You_, he trusts. Although your treatment of him on Friday, probably gave him just cause to second guess himself on that."

"No different than I usually treat any of them during a case, Duck and they know that." The Team Leader replied without hesitation or guilt.

"Yes, Jethro, We all know that. Perhaps this time, you would do well to remember that we all have physical limitations that sometimes prevent us from meeting your unreasonable expectations, even in the most dire of need for them."

"I hear ya, Duck." Gibbs flipped the elevator switch back on and listened to Ducky's answer.

"Good. Now, I shall be keeping an eye on Timothy throughout the day and if I see any further signs of eye problems or even the return of those dreadful headaches, I shall send him straight to his eye doctor and demand a written letter of fitness to be working."

"He's in Cybercrimes helping them out." Gibbs enlightened him as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened on the Autopsy level..

"Very well. I shall keep you posted, Jethro." Ducky answered as he departed the box car and entered the swooshing doors of his workplace, leaving a thoughtful Gibbs to go back up to work; or head out for coffee in order to get through the day.


	5. Chapter 5

Two hours and a hundred different screens flashing before his eyes later; Tim was sharply reminded about the second possible diagnosis he'd stumbled across during his research of the symptoms he was experiencing with his vision. He'd practically memorized the information he'd read on the website he'd found on it.

_**Asthenopia**__or __**eye strain**__is an ophthalmological condition that manifests itself through nonspecific symptoms such as fatigue, pain in or around the eyes, blurred vision, headache and occasional double vision. Symptoms often occur after reading, computer work, or other close activities that involve tedious visual tasks._

Prescription eye drops called Restasis (Allergan) go one step further: they help your body produce more tears by reducing inflammation associated with dry eye syndrome.

Tim remembered paying attention to the differences listed between the eye strain diagnosis and that of Computer Vision Syndrome. Interestingly enough, the differences seemed simple enough. It was the lack of neck and shoulder pain as well as the lingering fatigue that Tim couldn't seem to shake that together had convinced him which problem he was dealing with.

Blinking rapidly for a solid minute, Tim came away with the irritated eye feeling that had now become so typical, he almost couldn't remember not feeling it, along with the beginnings of yet another headache. As if that weren't bad enough, the jackhammers were returning, turning the pain dial in his head up from a dull throb to a magnified squeeze of agony almost in the space of a mere minute and not even a few moments of gentle massaging at his temples did anything to ease them.

Reluctantly internally admitting defeat, Tim gave up trying to fight the onslaught. Reaching into his backpack, he dug out his over the counter eye drops and slipped them into his pants pocket, getting up from his workstation and making a beeline for the men's head. His focus was so tunnel visioned, he failed to see Ducky standing in the doorway to Cybercrimes, watching Tim as he did what was necessary to get through the day with this ongoing problem.

Ducky frowned as he thought over what he was seeing. Apparently, his words to Jethro regarding Timothy earlier were more true than even the M.E. himself, had realized. Having stood here long enough to see the young man in question fight his symptoms to no avail, he realized the solomn truth. It was time to put his medically authoritative foot down and force Timothy to do something more about this problem.

"Dr. Mallard? Is there a problem?" Director Vance asked as he walked through the sub-basement work area. "I realize it's rare for me to show myself down here, even if it is for a meeting; but I highly doubt you have any reason to be down here at all."

"You're quite right, Director. I do believe I haven't ever wandered down into these parts before. However, I felt Agent McGee might appreciate being treated to lunch and so here I am, waiting to spirit him away, as I'm certain he could use the fresh air, at least."

Vance nodded almost absently at the seemingly harmless explanation and turned away in the direction of the elevator. He'd keep his knowledge of what he'd just witnessed to himself for the time being. But it was for certain, that he'd be talking to someone about it before too awfully long.

From the outskirts of the large room, Tim waited with bated breath until he heard the elevator doors close back up, taking the Agency Director away from the basement, before he retraced his steps to his desk, already knowing he'd find Ducky waiting to talk to him. Along the way, he at least found the time to take several deep breaths and slowly let them back out. All he could do was hope his face wore a neutral expression by now and not anything that would give himself or what he was trying like hell to suppress, away.

"Ah, Timothy! There you are! Shall we go to lunch?" Ducky asked innocently enough.

Tim smiled warily. "Thanks, Ducky. But, I really can't spare the time."

"Yes, young man, you can and you will." The M.E. insisted firmly while trying not to raise his voice.

Tim looked at Ducky in shock. The M.E. had never spoken to him like that before. _Just what the heck was going on here?_

"Come, the hour will be up before we know it." Ducky's voice was calm and level once more as he led the way to the elevator, not waiting for Tim to object or procrastinate any longer.

Tim snapped up his backpack and hurried after the M.E., feeling his tension increase with every step he took. _What was going on here?_

A mere fifteen silent minutes later found them sitting comfortably at table outside a nearby café, watching as the waitress set their sandwich plates in front of them and refilled their glasses of iced tea. The tension between them seemed to have slowly but steadily risen over the last few minutes until Tim was practically jumping in his seat. Finally, he couldn't stand it any longer; he had to know what was going on. "Ducky, what's this about?"

"Considering the amount of physical difficulty you've been experiencing lately with your eyes and your headaches, young man, I would have thought the answer to that would be rather obvious." Ducky told him seriously with enough disappointment in his tone that Tim did genuinely look guilty for trying to pull the obtuse act on the kindly man who'd always had his best interest at heart.

Breathing out a sigh and taking a minute to take in and let out some additional cleansing breaths, Tim finally felt ready to face the M.E.'s question beneath the surface of his answer. "Ducky, I'm fine."

"Timothy, McGee. Do not dare attempt to lie to me. As someone who cares about you and your well-being, I find it highly insulting and ultimately damaging to the friendship I truly believe you honor as much as I do!"

Tim's breathing hitched as he felt Ducky's words like a dagger to his heart. At a loss for words to make it up to the kindly older man, Tim remained silently brooding in the mire of his own bad judgement call.

"Timothy, my boy, I am not Gibbs. I not only accept apologies, I appreciate them in the spirit they are usually given." Ducky tried to let him off the hook.

Almost instantly, Tim's head came up, his eyes filled with sorrow and guilt. "Ducky, I am sorry. You know I would never want to lie to you or damage our friendship."

"Yet, somehow you felt trying to convince me that you are alright was more important than the truth." The M.E. surmised calmly, no longer angry at him.

Tim nodded. "Yeah." He admitted quietly.

"I want you to understand something, Timothy. While I forgive your attempt to lie to me; I will NOT stand by and watch you ruin what you have by sheer stubbornness or hardheadedness on your part. Especially when it is placing you at risk for losing something invaluable and irreplaceable, such as your eye sight! "

"I don't understand wha…."

Taking a tri-folded piece of paper from his shirt pocket, Ducky unfolded it and presented it to Tim, setting it down directly in front of him before the young man could even finish his sentence.

Tim stopped trying to talk and perused the paper in silence, his surprise beginning to show almost immediately as he read the approval for medical leave for a doctor's appointment that he knew he hadn't made. Looking up at the M.E, he waited for the explanation he knew would be forthcoming.

"This is mandatory, Timothy. I checked your records for the name of your Optometrist and made you the appointment myself. After you have kept this appointment, you will bring me this paper signed by your eye doctor, as well as this one." Again, Ducky pulled a piece of paper out of his shirt pocket and unfolded it before Tim. "This one will certify that you are capable of doing the duties that your job requires of you without any need for a further stretch of days off to ease the strain your eyes have been under."

Caught completely unaware and unprepared, Tim found himself both angry and relieved. He wasn't angry at Ducky by any stretch of the imagination. No, the person he was angry with, was himself. Apparently, he hadn't done near as much of a bang-up job of hiding his problem as he'd thought he had.

Consequently, he was now right where he'd fought so hard _not_ to wind up; on everyone's radar with the future of his career at stake. Now, he'd never be able to keep his Field Agent status. His job would be given to someone else while he got flipped out of NCIS for good. With vision problems, there was no way anyone would see him as useful to the agency. After all, what good is a geek without eyes to be that geek with? _God, he couldn't believe he'd screwed this up!_

"Timothy?" Ducky asked worriedly as Tim's silence drew on and on.

Finally, the young man looked up. In the quietest tone, Ducky had ever heard Tim use and with more dejection than he'd ever seen in the young man's eyes before, the agent finally responded. "Okay, Ducky. I'll go. "

"Very good. I wasn't looking forward to calling in the big guns, young man." Ducky offered a tad bit dryly as he tried to lighten the mood.

Tim offered a small thin smile "No need. I promise."

"Good. Do you need me to drive you?"

"No, No, I've got transportation worked out. There's no need for you to go through the trouble."

"I am trusting you to follow through with this, young man. It is for your own good." Ducky pushed authoritatively.

"I know. I promise, I'll go." Tim vowed as he used his fork to play listlessly with his fries on his plate. Suddenly, he'd lost his appetite. Realizing that your career is over, tended to do that to people, he imagined.

"Eat up, young man, you need to keep up your strength." The M.E. pushed.

Tim shook his head sadly. "Not hungry."

"Eat, regardless." Ducky ordered without mercy.

Tim smiled without humor and took a few bites of his sandwich before setting it down and washing it down with some of his iced tea. Once he'd forced himself to do that much, he sat back broodingly and stared out the plate glass window beside him.

Ducky observed Tim's mood with faux nonchalance and an invisible shrug of his shoulders. He knew this was to be expected because he had already reasoned out what was running through the young man's mind and apparently he'd been very much on the money with his assessment of the situation. And although he was far from happy to be right; he was more than grateful that he'd caught it before it spun out of control for the young man.

Finally, after letting Tim stew about the situation for only a few minutes, Ducky stood and left the table to pay the bill, leaving Tim to figure out it was almost time to get back to work. Pulling himself from his thoughts, Tim laid a few dollars on the table for the waitress and joined Ducky as the older man reached the door. Together, they walked to the car and wordlessly got in, suffering though a tense silence all the way back to the office.

After thanking Ducky for lunch, Tim returned to the sub-basement, ready to get back to work. It wasn't long before he was once again completely lost in the world of cyber searches and the hunt for the keys to the next encryption mystery that needed to be cracked. Time slipped away from his grasp and the day disappeared long before he stopped to even take a deep breath, surprisingly enough, removing any thoughts of his eye problems from his mind.

Glancing around the now darkened room, Tim was startled to find himself alone in Cybercrimes. The workday had ended well over two hours ago and no one had disturbed him as he swatched paths through the cyber world to find his answers in case after backlogged case. The stack he'd been asked to help with had become almost invisible and with only one case left to get through, he wasn't willing to stop yet. A quick glance at the computer desktop screen showed him that it was going on 7:30 PM.

Smiling even though he was suddenly reminded of his need for his eye drops again, as well as more headache relief, Tim got up to stretch his kinked up muscles and decided to use the break to take care of everything he needed to do before getting back to work. With a quick ruffle though his pants pocket, he realized he had enough for a drink and a snack and he headed to the sub-basement's break room after snatching up his eye drops and bottle of asprin.

Ten short minutes later found Tim back at his desk and once again delving into the world he excelled at; searching. Actually smiling now, he tuned out the world around him, empty and silent as it was, and kept going. He was so caught up in his own little space that he never even heard the elevator as it brought him a visitor and he never even felt the presence of that visitor before he felt the head slap he hadn't realized was coming.

"OW!" Tim yelped loudly as he nearly jumped out of his chair.

"What the hell are you still doin' here, McGee?" Gibbs asked him angrily.

"Working, Boss." Tim replied defensively. "The team's still here aren't they?"

"Doesn't matter. You're working Cybercrimes for the day – your work shoulda stopped over 2 hours ago!"

"Boss, I'm almost finished the last case. Then I can be back upstairs with you guys tomorrow." The younger man pushed to make his point.

"Yeah?" Gibbs asked in mock surprise.

"Yeah."

"Not gonna happen, McGee." The Team Leader threw his agent one hell of a curve ball.

"What?" The younger man dropped the proverbial ball in shock.

"In case you forgot, you have an appointment in the morning. I don't wanna even see you in the squad room until Ducky gives you the all clear." Gibbs' tone booked no argument.

Tim swallowed hard as he looked away, unable to handle the look on the boss' face for even a minute longer. _That was disappointment he was seeing, wasn't it?_ He hadn't realized Gibbs knew about that, but he should have counted on it. Now his career really was in jeopardy. _Damn it!_

Gibbs looked at his agent with concern as he took in the young man's vulnerable look of defeat as well as his silence. Ducky's words of warning regarding Tim's thought process came back to him vividly now as he heard the words replay in his mind.

_I imagine that is probably what is keeping Timothy so mum on the situation, himself. I'm certain, he's already established that with vision problems, his job might very well be in jeopardy__."_

Not wanting to make this worse on his agent, Gibbs turned and headed to the elevator without another word. Nothing else needed to be added to what had already been spoken between them. Tim knew what was expected of him and Gibbs knew the young man would obey the order he'd been given. Hopefully, all of this would just be a memory by tomorrow afternoon. The boss could only hope as much.


	6. Chapter 6

Tuesday morning rolled around bringing with it bright sunshine as it filtered through the blinds on Tim's apartment bedroom window. The heat of those rays was such a rare occasion for the normally much earlier riser, that he immediately sat upright in bed, his eyes popping open in startled concern. Looking around him, he caught sight of the bedside clock, taking note that it, indeed was nearly seven in the morning and he was going to be late; for his eye doctor appointment, if he didn't hurry up and get out the door by seven-thirty.

As he methodically went through his routine of getting ready, his mind took him back, almost of its' own accord, to the events of last night in the subbasement when he and Gibbs actually had a moment in which anything unsettled between them could have been addressed; but wasn't. The only thing that had been discussed was this doctor's appointment that Tim was being ordered to attend. Once that had been brought out into the open, the only thing that remained between them was a silence that quickly became heavy with things left unsaid.

Once Gibbs had made his point that Tim wasn't wanted at work until he'd gone to this eye appointment and been cleared by Ducky, Tim hadn't known what to say. In a rare moment of freeze-framed time, Gibbs remained where he stood, despite not having anything else to say. It had almost been as if the boss had been waiting for Tim to say something. No matter what Tim had wanted to say, embarrassment and fear for the way this was spiraling out of control on him, kept him silent. The last thing he wanted or needed to do was make the situation worse by opening his mouth and having something come out that might dig this hole a little deeper on him or worse, tick the boss off even more.

When the boss had left without another word, Tim had felt like he'd just been dropped down into a well, with only the hope of a positive report from the eye doctor to help him out of it. It left him feeling dizzy and almost sick to his stomach. Realizing he hadn't eaten since lunch which had been hours ago and that Gibbs would most likely kick his rear end if Tim didn't indeed get up outta here and go home, Tim quickly packed up, locked down his work station and headed out. Suddenly, his chronic fatigue claimed him without mercy and every step out to the front security desk after he forced himself to call a cab, felt like his feet were made of poured and set concrete and all thoughts of food slipped away; his focus turning to that of sleep and the need to close his irritated eyes as soon he possibly could.

He'd been shocked when Gibbs had pulled up in front of the building and quickly dismissed his cab.

"C'mon, McGee, I'll drive you home." Were the only words spoken between them as Tim silently followed what he knew was an order disguised as an offer, and got in the boss' car. Truth be told, he was beyond grateful for the rare and completely unexpected show of generous support. Tim was smart enough to realize that Gibbs was, in effect, sparing him expensive cab fare, at the same time he just happened to be reinforcing the fact that the man did in fact care about this agent, as a person as well as an agent under his supervision.

While it warmed Tim's heart and even raised his self-esteem a little; it did very little to pacify the fear that had been tapping Tim on the shoulder for the past month, that all of this was going to come to a screeching halt the minute the eye doctor passed on his diagnosis of Tim's eye problems.

The drive to Tim's apartment had been the longest stretch of silence between the two of them that Tim could ever remember, but apparently, neither of them felt the need or inclination to disrupt that state of affairs between them. Even when Gibbs pulled up in front of the entrance to Tim's apartment building and Tim silently got out, the boss didn't say a word, even though he did remain sitting there for a minute.

Tim had quickly yet very quietly, thanked the man before getting out of the car and shuffling his way inside his apartment building, still feeling the draining pull of exhaustion he really needed to give up fighting. He'd been thankful that the elevator was working and had wasted no time in taking it to his floor. It seemed like forever, but in reality, it was only ten minutes later that Tim was able to literally crash for the night; falling onto his bed, his eyes closing before his head even hit the pillows.

Blinking several times in quick succession now, Tim brought his mind back to the here and now and the fact that his shower had run cold. Shivering, he quickly turned it off and grabbed up a towel, briskly rubbing himself dry as best he could before almost jumping into his clothes. Finally, some ten minutes later he was ready to go, having to stare longingly at the coffee pot as he passed by his kitchen, in too big of a hurry to take the time to eat anything for breakfast.

He'd almost reached his door when a knock sounded on the other side of it, startling him into freezing mid-stride. Tim wasn't expecting anyone but he wasn't expecting trouble either. The boss wasn't expecting him at work. Tony and Ziva should have already started their day behind their desks already. So, who the heck could it be coming to see him at this hour on a workday?"

"Open up, Probie, I know you're in there!" Tony's firm voice boomed through the door, seeming to echo off the apartment walls and hit Tim from all directions.

"Tony? What are you doing here?" Tim asked in surprise as he quickly unlocked his door and opened it.

"Haven't you heard? I'm your chauffeur for the morning. C'mon, let's get a move on, we're gonna be late. Can't do that 'cause, I for one, am not prepared to handle being head slapped by both Gibbs AND Ducky!" Tony quipped as he glanced around Tim's apartment before letting his eyes fall on his teammate. "You alright this mornin', Probie?"

"I'm fine, Tony. In fact, thank you, but I don't need a chauffur. I can take a cab and I can take the bus to work after my appointment. Oh, Crap! Who told you about this?" Tim was embarrassed all over again.

"Relax, McEyedrop, I'm under orders, not only to safely deliver you to your appointment on time; but to also hence forth and forever, refuse to speak of this to anyone.'" Tony intoned in a voice that so closely imitated Ducky's voice, Tim had to laugh.

"Yeah? So, Ducky ordered you to take me and then not say anything about it every again?" Tim tried to clarify.

"Uhm, Technically, Gibbs ordered me to drive you, but our wiley ole M.E. was quite clear he wouldn't hesitate to tan my behind if I ever breathe a word of this to anyone; most especially you, in any form of jest."

"Oh. " Tim breathed out in shock. Taking a minute to think about it, he could only come out with yet another exclamation. "Wow."

"Yeah, I got that, already, Probie. Can we just get going?" Tony griped as he practically flew down the hallway, choosing to descend the stairs as fast as his athletic legs could carry him.

Tim hustled to get out to the car as quickly as he could, feeling the weight of Tony being forced to do this against his will. It sat like a dead weight on Tim's conscience. Without anything being said between them, Tony quickly headed the car out of the parking lot and drove through the streets of Silver Spring.

They hadn't been driving for five minutes before Tim couldn't stand it any more. "Tony, I'm sorry Gibbs ordered you to do this. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm grateful that he's gone out of his way to let me see that he cares, but the last thing I wanted was for anyone to have to do something for me that they didn't wanna do."

"That's what you think?" Tony questioned with disappointment ringing clear.

"What else am I supposed to think when you sound less than thrilled to be doing this and can't wait to get it over with?"

"You're such a dimwit sometimes, Probie." Tony snarked. "If I didn't wanna be doing this, do you really think I'd be here? Gibbs could have just as easily sent Ziva to be your driver, but he didn't because he knew I wanted to make sure you're all right."

Tim huffed out a gentle breath of dry silent laughter at his own ignorance of just how caring Tony really was underneath all of his bravado. "Thanks, Tony. That means a lot coming from you."

"I figured it would. Kinda why I said it, dufus." Tony grinned. Waiting a full minute before getting serious again, Tony's next question let it rip just how he really felt about Tim's attempted cover up of this whole ordeal. "Next time you spend weeks trying to hide stuff from me, instead of just coming clean – I'll head slap you harder than I ever did your first 2 years on the team! You got me?"

"Don't be such a hypocrite, Tony. Hell, you and Gibbs are the reason I don't say anything to anyone about anything!" Tim shot back before he could filter his response.

"What the hell does that mean, McGee?" Tony asked with his own dose of anger.

"Think about it, Tony! Just how often do either of you let the rest of us in on anything going on with you? Hell, you tell each other more than any of the rest of us are EVER clued into. Or maybe it's just me that's completely left out of the loop." Tim sniped. "You can't get pissed at me for handling my own problems the same way!"

"Wasn't what I meant, Tim. Look, can we just forget we even had this conversation? I'm driving you because I wanna help. And all I meant was, the next time you need help or just someone to talk to; look me up."

"Yeah, okay." Tim groused sarcastically.

"What the hell does that mean?" Tony demanded.

"It means, Tony, that you can't even be bothered to be available after work on the rare occassion I try to reach you for a work related matter without you deliberately ignoring my calls and voicemails, not to _mention_, being condescending towards me about it the next day. What makes you think that I'd believe for a minute that you'd be there for a personal matter? You're just feeding me this crap to …I don't even know why you're trying to feed it to me."

Tony blew out a frustrated breath of air. "Damn it, Probie."

Now it was Tim's turn to let out a frustrated sigh as he tried to explain himself better. "Tony. Look. I know there's been plenty of times that you've been there for me; saved my ass a few times, even. Especially, that day you came to work right after you had the plague. I'll never forget how you saved all of our lives that day, alright? But, that doesn't mean I'm comfortable letting you in on anything personal. It's not something that's ever been a comfortable place for either one of us to go with the other and you know I'm right."

"Yeah. McGee. I know." Tony admitted softly.

"I mean, Gibbs is already stretching himself above normal to be nice to me and now you're trying to do it? I'm starting to wonder just how deep the crap hole really is that I've gotten myself into here."

"Meaning what exactly, McGee?"

"Meaning, Tony, that it's the only time you two are ever this nice to me; when I'm in the doghouse so deep I'm not gonna see the outside of it for a week or more."

"And what could you possibly have done that put you in the doghouse, McGee?" Tony's question was unusually calm and encouraging and if Tim had been paying attention, he would have caught it.

But, he wasn't. Tim was finally on a roll of opening up to someone and he didn't seem to even be aware of it. "I've been trying to force my eyes to stop irritating me and my head to stop hurting for weeks now. Even the eye drops have stopped helping. It's frustrating!"

Tony wisely kept silent, hoping Tim would continue to unload whatever else was on his mind. It seemed that Lady Luck was on his side as Tim did keep going.

"I mean, the Dry Eye I figured out that I have is bad enough, but now I'm supposed to let my eye doctor officially tell me that I'm right and that I have Asthenopia. Can't do that without telling Gibbs and I can't tell Gibbs without Vance having to be told and once _he_ finds out; then I'll be out of a job faster than I can catch my breath!"

"Damn, Probie! How about you let me catch MY breath for a second? Now, back up and explain a few things to me." Tony replied as he parked the car in the eye doctor's parking lot. "What the hell is that A word you just used? What's it mean?"

"Asthenopia?"

"Yeah, that one!"

"Just another word for Eye Strain, Tony."

"Then why the hell didn't you just say that? Okay, second question. How the hell do you know what the problem is if you haven't been to the eye doctor?"

"Easy enough to research the symptoms, Tony."

"I get it. That way you could self-medicate and continue to hide it all."

Tim remained silent on that remark.

"Where the hell did you get the hairbrained idea that Gibbs telling Vance about your eye strain would mean you were out of a job?" Tony demanded.

"Simple, Tony. I'm the Team Geek. A Geek's no good to anyone without eye sight, right?"

Tony shook his head in disbelief. "Damn, Probie. It's a damn good thing I'm not allowed to head slap you right now. Of all the stupid, idiotic…. Get outta here and go see the damn doctor! I'll be here when you get out."

"No, Tony. Thank you for the ride and the chance to talk. God, I can't believe you found a way to get me to let you in like that. I'll take the bus to work from here."

"No, Pr…"

"Tony! Please! Let me have this one, alright?" Tim pushed loudly.

Taken aback from Tim's unusual assertion, Tony could only nod in agreement. "Alright, Probie. But, I want a phone call when you're on your way, got it?"

"Okay."

"Alright, go on." Tony teasingly pushed as he started the car back up.

"Tony?" Tim paused as he stepped out of the car and closed the door, speaking through the open window on the door.

"Yeah, McGee?"

"Thank you. Really. And not just for this, but for Friday and Saturday, too."

"You're welcome, Probie. Maybe one of these days you'll start believing that I genuinely do care about you."

Tim smiled sadly. "I already know you do, Tony. I have no doubt about that."

"Oh. Well, then what…?"

Tim smiled softly and turned away from the car, wordlessly taking himself away from the conversation he didn't feel like repeating. He could only hope Tony would figure out that it was his own inability to be comfortable showing that he cared that was sticking in Tim's craw and wrapping that genuine concern in a shroud of disbelief.


	7. Chapter 7

Tony got to work in a much calmer mood, having had plenty of time to think about what Tim had told him; had admitted to him. Hearing Tim's conviction that his career was getting ready to take a major hit over something he truthfully couldn't completely control, really threw Tony off kilter. He needed to talk to Gibbs. Then again, he got the feeling the boss already knew exactly what was going on, which was why Tony had gotten that strange call from the man himself last night.

**_***Flashback***_**

"_Agent DiNozzo."_

"_You stop lookin' at your caller id, DiNozzo?" Gibbs' almost scolding tone reached out and practically slapped Tony upside the head._

"_Uh, no, Boss. But my hands were kinda busy and. I di…"_

"_Got an early morning delivery for you to make. 0730."_

"_Okay. Who a…"_

"_McGee's place. Get him to where he needs to go by 0800. Don't be late."_

"_I'm on it, Boss. Wait, how, wi…"_

"_I'll have Abby send you the directions to the place. Want you to stay there and bring him to work when he's done."_

"_Sure thing, Boss."_

"_Thanks, Tony." Gibbs ended the call, leaving Tony speechless with surprise at the man's unusual expression of gratitude, and his inclusion of himself and Tony into McGee's private affairs. _

_Then again, the events of this past Friday had shaken everyone just enough that they'd realized something was going on with their probie and they all needed to try and at least reach out to him, if not help with whatever he needed help with._

**_***End Flashback**_**

Strolling into the squad room now, Tony was brought to a stand still as his eyes took in the shocking changes that had taken place to the place over the weekend. Gone were the older model computer monitors and even older model desk lamps. Heck, even the desk chairs had been switched out for more ergonomic chairs that even looked a lot more comfortable than their old ones. _Wait, even their desks had been switched out? _

As Tony looked a second time, his brain confirmed the half-asked question. He was right. All their desks had been replaced with bigger, roomier models that now boasted high definition 17 inch flat screen computer monitors in place of the older ones. Every one of their desks now also sported a new lamp with a less glaring glow. The final kicker was that every one of their computer monitors was fitted with a glare resistant magnifying screen.

Tony looked around for any sign of life besides the changes he knew hadn't happened by themselves and breathed a sigh of relief when he noticed Gibbs and Ducky walking in from the back hallway.

"Hey, Boss, Ducky! What's with all the changes around here?"

"DiNozzo. McGee get to his appointment alright?"

"Yeah, Boss. No sweat. But, that wasn't why you had me drive him, was it?"

"Have no idea what your'e talking about, DiNozzo." Gibbs made no bones about blowing off Tony's hinting push for more information.

"So, where's the newer Probie?" Tony changed the subject as he caught the hint. "And what's with all the new stuff?"

"Ziva's helping Abby and the new stuff is compliments of the Director." Gibbs offered calmly as he sat down behind his desk and began to get busy.

"The Director?" Tony questioned in surprise.

"Yes, DiNozzo. That would be me." Vance supplied as he came out from behind Tony where he'd been standing silently observing.

Glancing across the room at the unusu'ally quiet M.E., Vance spoke his mind. "Is that everything that needed to be addressed, Doctor Mallard?"

Ducky glanced up from the piece of paper he was reading and fastened his eyes on the Director for a brief moment. "Let me double check here before I answer that, if you don't mind. I'd rather be accurate before I speak to that."

"Not at all, Dr. Mallard. In fact, go through the list with us and we'll make sure nothing got missed." Vance suggested as he walked towards the group.

"What list are we talkin' about?" Tony had to know as he leaned back against his desk, choosing to keep his distance from the pack.

"The list of ways we can change all of our working conditions that will help all of us avoid the painful mess Timothy has been suffering though with his vision and may even help prevent those problems from becoming worse for him." Ducky replied as he looked back down at the paper and began alternately reading it over and glancing around the room as he verbally clued them in to the changes.

"Eye strain is often caused by excessively bright light and since your lighting is not coming from outside enough to make a difference, the harsh interior lighting is where we needed to focus the changes on. Since you are on your computer excessively, your ambient lighting should be about half as bright as that typically found in most offices so we've changed the fluorescent tube lighting to a lower intensity and your desk lamps have been changed out as well. Also, Jethro's and Timothy's computer monitors have been moved so that they are to the side of the window at the foot of the stairwell so that what light does come from there is not adversely affecting them. Since Anthony's and Ziva's computers are already facing sideways from that window, theirs did not need to be moved."

"Thankfully, that was a relatively inexpensive remedy." Vance offered. "Go on, Dr. Mallard."

Ducky checked his list again before looking up at each of them in turn as he spoke next. "Since glare on walls and finished surfaces, as well as reflections on your computer screen also can cause computer eye strain, an anti-glare screen has been installed on all of your monitors and your old monitors have been replaced with the LCD flat-panel screens that are much easier on the eyes. Also, since the optimal position for your computer monitor is slightly below eye level, about 20 to 28 inches away from your eyes, you'll 'll find small work stands as well as a device on your desk that will support your case files standing up so that you won't have to look up at the screen and back down at the desk while you type. Between the extra stand and the piece that fits on your desk, you should be able to work out which way works best for you."

"Sounds like you've covered all the logical bases, Ducky." Tony remarked with awe.

"Not quite, Anthony. There are several changes that you must all do for yourselves. The first of which is to adjust the display settings on your computer so the brightness of the screen is about the same as your work environment."

"Blinking is another very important thing you must do when working at a computer. That simple gesture that most of us take for granted moistens your eyes to prevent dryness and you must make an effort to blink more often than you usually do – I would say at least a half-dozen more times a day, at least."

"That sounds easy enough to do." Ziva remarked from where she stood at the edge of her desk; where she'd walked to from the front elevator that none of them had heard arrive.

"It isn't difficult to do; simply hard to actively remember throughout a busy day." Ducky reminded them. "Additionally, you should try to remember that another cause of computer eye strain is focusing fatigue. To reduce your risk of tiring your eyes by constantly focusing on your screen, look away from your computer at least every 20 minutes and gaze at a distant object preferably at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. Some eye doctors call this the_ "20-20-20 rule." _This relaxes the focusing muscle inside the eye to reduce fatigue_."_

"Sounds easy enough to remember if we keep the Rule in mind. Lord, knows we're used to those, right?" Tony snarked with a grin, earning him an eye roll from the boss across the room.

"That everything, Duck?" Gibbs asked from behind his own desk.

"Not quite, Jethro. The last change must come from you."

"Okay."

"You will need to work on letting them take at least one more break a day than you've become accustomed to giving them, Jethro." Ducky broke the news to his friend. "Although, the discomfort and eye strain have been known to be significantly reduced with just four additional five minute breaks throughout the work day." His friend half-scolded, half encouraged with a smile.

"Just four?" Gibbs joked with a smirk.


	8. Chapter 8

Tim felt like he'd been dropped into a science fiction movie. He just couldn't wrap his head around what he'd been told. The fact that he'd been right in his deductive reasoning and his research was inconsequential to the more important fact that what he'd already known to be probable, was now his reality. The diagnosis was officially on paper and he was officially screwed! His job was over. Life as he knew it was no longer going to be as he knew it to be. It sucked to be him right now and even he didn't know what to do about it.

Almost as if he were watching someone else control his body; he found himself almost aimlessly making it to the bus stop and getting on the metro transit and even managing to take the connecting one he needed for the Navy Yard. The walk from the bus stop to the yard front gate did little to help him put his thoughts in order or calm his rising sense of doom.

****NCIS****

"Wasn't Probie due back already, Boss?" Tony asked as he glanced at clock on his computer screen. "I dropped him off on time. It's been th…"

"I know how long it's been DiNozzo." Gibbs remarked as he deliberately cut his Senior Field Agent off. "Get back to work. McGee'll get here when he gets here."

"Boss, I…"

"There was a reason I told you to stay there with him, DiNozzo."

"He wanted some space, Boss. Practically begged me to let him have it."

Gibbs frowned as he remained silent on that point.

Tony huffed out a breath of air, an obvious sign he was frustrated, but did as he was ordered and got back to work going through the case file on his desk.

Glancing across at his other agent steadily working without interruption, Gibbs noticed Ziva continuing to glance at McGee's desk across the room every few minutes, as if she was still worried about him, too. Trying to curtail the smile that was threatening to escape from behind his wall of self-control, Gibbs got up from his desk and headed out for more coffee.

The stroll to and from the coffee shop helped ease his need for a piece of solitude and peace and quiet. With his fresh cup of coffee in hand, Gibbs returned to the office, stopping half way to the front entrance as he spied his youngest agent headed inside, just ahead of him. Gibbs didn't like what he was seeing and he hoped that the despair in Tim's eyes, was temporary. Again, he recalled Ducky's words of warning regarding what the younger man was probably worrying about and although it gave credence to the look he'd just seen on the young man's face; it didn't bode well for what might be written on his paperwork from his eye doctor.

Determined to give the kid the breathing room he'd asked Tony for, Gibbs remained frozen in place so Tim could have time to get checked in and get down to Ducky for the last step he needed to do before returning to work. After a few minutes, the Team Leader headed inside, deliberately going straight to his desk and not letting his usual strong-arm style get the better of him this time. It took a lot of self discipline for him to remain at his desk and not invade Ducky's suite to see for himself what Tim's news was. Patience had never been Gibbs' strong suite, but he was willing to force it on himself this time. Besides, they'd be up here to let him in on it before too long, of that he was certain.

*****NCIS*****

Tim's hesitant footsteps somehow still managed to get him to the Autopsy doors and before he realized it, the swooshing of them, brought him out of the thin fog that had misted over his brain cells. At his entry into the room, Ducky looked up from his desk and offered Tim an encouraging smile.

"Ah, Timothy. You've made it back to our humble abode. I trust the visit to the eye doctor has helped you understand what is going on with your vision?"

Feeling like he was still in shock, Tim could only nod sadly.

"It looks to me as if I have been correct in believing you have allowed yourself to quickly see this in a most negative light. Might I ask what it is you are so obviously worried about, my friend?"

Still at a loss for the words to explain how he felt, Tim could only shrug his shoulders as he handed over his paperwork for Ducky to see. The kindly older man tore his eyes away from the young agent and perused the papers he'd just been handed. With a wave of internal relief, the M.E. realized he'd already taken care of most of what was needed to work on alleviating Tim's eye strain.

He could still hear the conversation he'd had with the Team Leader about this very topic on Saturday morning when he'd stopped in for coffee and to check on Timothy.

_***Flashback***_

"_Jethro, I wonder; are you prepared to make whatever changes are necessary to help solve this problem not only for Timothy, but to head it off for the rest of your team as well?"_

"_Of course, Duck. What needs to be done?"_

"_A lot of changes in your work space and in the equipment allotted to you in that workspace."_

"_Sounds like we need to be having this discussion in Vance's office."_

"_I heartedly agree, my friend."_

_***End Flashback***_

Smiling now, at how easy it was to get the Agency Director on board with the changes, despite the unexpected costs, Ducky patted the worried agent comfortingly on the shoulder.

"I'm pleased to say that you're all clear to return to work, Timothy. Come, let's let Jethro know he can have his computer expert back, shall we?" Ducky led the way out of Autopsy.

"Huh? Wait, Ducky! What are you talking about? You see what my problem is; how it's gonna keep getting worse. How can you just blow it off like that?" Tim was genuinely confused, if not a tad bit angry at the reaction he hadn't expected and couldn't make sense of.

"Come along, Timothy, we haven't much time!" Ducky insisted as he held the elevator button to keep the door open while he waited for Tim.

The ride up to the squad room was completed in silence and it seemed that with every passing minute, Tim was becoming more and more internally upset, his shoulders beginning to slouch more and more; that is until he let his eyes wander enough to start noticing the changes that had been made in the squad room.

Shocked into a standstill; Tim remained frozen in place as he stood between his desk and the boss, looking around and truly taking in all of the changes. The priceless expression on Tim's face brought a smirk or a smile to the rest of his team and even Abby and Jimmy as they came up to take part in the fun. No one said a word into the silence though; each wanting to have Tim's reaction be the only focus for the moment.

Forever restless and easily bored, Tony couldn't stand the silence any longer as he practically spring-loaded himself across the room to stand next to his probie. "So, Probie, still gonna tell me that you don't have a job here?"

"Not what I said, Tony." Tim murmured quietly.

"Oh, that's right. Now I remember. You said you wouldn't have a job here without your eyesight because that's all we need you for; your computer whizzardry." Tony's voice was definitely edging over that fine line between dry humor and sarcasm as he let the others in on the part of Tim's reasoning that had rankled him the most.

Unbeknown to Tim, who had yet to look at anyone straight on, Gibbs took that moment to gesture for his Senior Field Agent to back off and go back to his desk. Truth be told, Gibbs wanted the chance to speak his mind to the young man and he didn't want any more time wasted before he had his say. Stepping up to the young man, he stood toe to toe with him, in front of every one of Tim's team members and friends, while keeping his voice just between the two of them. "McGee."

Tim couldn't help but look up from glancing around the room at the sound of that voice wanting his attention. Locking his eyes on those of his boss, Tim swallowed hard as he prepared himself to hear the axe as it was swung down hard.

"Disappointed in you, McGee."

"Boss, I…"

"Thought you knew by now, better than to try to hide problems like this from me."

"Boss, I di…"

"Next time you pull a stunt like that, McGee; you'll be riding out a two week suspension."

Tim swallowed hard. Okay, that was harsh. But, he could see the boss' point. "Yes, Boss." Tim turned to head to his desk.

"Hey. " Gibbs called him back impatiently since he hadn't told him to go.

With his heart already down in his boots, the young man retraced his steps. "Boss?"

Tapping Tim on the temple, Gibbs spoke to him quietly yet firmly. "Don't ever think you're only good to us because of your computer skills! There's a hell of a lot more up there for this job than that and every one of us knows that. Why the hell don't you?"

"Boss, I… I'm no…." Tim stammered with no idea how to justify anything right now.

Gibbs huffed out a soft sigh of impatience before he spoke again. "We're all here for you, McGee. You just gotta learn to let us in."

_FINIS_

* * *

><p><em>I apologise for the strange ending - keep in mind this was written for a challenge and the deadline almost caught up to me before I was through<br>_


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